Are You Ready for the Bridegroom?

Okay, okay, so here I am. I'm live on, um, YouTube and on Facebook. Uh, Louisiana— uh, no, Louisville, Kentucky. How you doing, Fab? Thank you for, um, showing up. Hello everybody, um, welcome to Facebook and YouTube. I'm also on Instagram shouting everybody out. Okay, all righty, so before I start, I'mma say a quick prayer and we'll go ahead and get into the word. And so, Father, I just thank you for your word on tonight. God, I pray, God, that it would encourage your people, it would edify your people, and it will allow them to see, God, just how much you love them and just how much you desire to have an intimate relationship with them. And so, God, I surrender my mind, my heart, my soul, my mouth, my hand, whatever you want to use, God. I am a vessel, God, um, unto you, Lord God, to be able to deliver this word to your people. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. Amen. So I have a very specific word to share with you all. I'm not going to be up here long, that's not my plan anyway, okay? I like to go ahead and get straight to the point. So this past Sunday, um, night, um, before I start, let me say some of you guys up here on Instagram are new to me. So my name is Shakeeta Torres. I am a therapist, I'm a life coach, uh, also share, um, the word for from the Lord. Whatever God give me to share up here, um, I share. And I have been up here for, God, since 2020. Yeah, 2020 on social media. Okay, so Sunday night, um, Saturday was— yes, Sunday night I had a dream, um, from the Lord. And in my dream, I was in a room preparing to get married, okay? And I had picked out two different dresses and they were beautiful, beautiful gowns, you guys. So beautiful. And I was very like just like panicky and anxious about which dress to wear. I worried about my hair, my outfit, my shoes. I mean, I was just so just on edge about everything. Not only that, in my dream, a woman had came to my room and she was like, hey, she was like, um, you know, you need to hurry up and get dressed because people are out here waiting for you. And so I asked her, I'm like, hey, can you stay here with me to help me get ready? And she told me, she said, no, I have to go up front and help out there. And so I was by myself. I had no, no bridesmaids there, no maid of honor there, no one there to help me to prepare to get ready. And so that alone is causing me to be in, you know, in like distress too. So she came back to me again saying, hey, it's almost time for you to go walk down the aisle. And I'm like, oh my God, my hair is a mess. Like, my hair was like falling on the side. I mean, you got— I was unprepared, okay? So unprepared. Now mind you, I'm married in real life, okay? I, I've been married now for 15 years, okay? Um, and so as I'm going toward the sanctuary, you know, I just feel so just like unprepared. And I was upset because people that I wanted to be there were not there. Um, I was walking through the door, down the aisle. I saw some of my family there, but I was like by myself pretty much. And so, um, I'm going towards the aisle, you know, I just feel sad. I felt sad and I felt like, um, I did not do all I could to prepare properly for my groom. Okay, then the dream, it ended. All right, and so, um, when I woke up, you know, I was still kind of groggy a little bit. The dream kind of came back to me, you know, I wrote the dream down Um, I got up, you know, I didn't really sit down with it a lot, just a little bit. Um, and so I was driving to the store maybe an hour later, later, whatever, to go get food for my family. And like, as I was driving, the Lord began to minister to me about this dream, and he said, this dream is not about you but about the body of Christ. And I said, oh, that makes complete sense, that makes complete sense. I said, well, Lord, you know, give me, you know, revelation as to how you want me to share with your people. And so he did. Um, and so he began to minister to me. He was like, you know, listen, my bride is concerned about the wrong things, the wrong things as a whole, right? Not every single person, um, is in this situation, but as a whole, the church, the body of Christ, right, is so consumed with looking, um, good on the outside that they are not looking on the inside, which is their heart posture. Now, as a therapist, over the years I've counseled many people and many women who were preparing to get married, and they were worried about the wrong thing. They were so consumed about looking good. They were so consumed about every single detail, to the point where they lost focus of what is really important. Which was their heart posture and their relationship with the groom. Okay, oftentimes we can see, you know, most of the time, not all the time, you know, some men, you know, they really don't care about all that stuff. And so men who don't care about that stuff, you have a woman who's like, oh my God, like head over heels over the whole process, sometimes it can cause the groom to become frustrated because he's like, listen, I just want to marry you. I don't care about, you know, the glitz and the glam and their mom and their daddy. I mean, that's important, you want to be beautiful, but not to the point where it consumes you. It consumes your relationship, it consumes your time, your finances, it makes you stressed out, right? And so this is the same way that Christ feels about us, the body of Christ. He does not want us being consumed with so many other things that are not important. He want us to be consumed with our heart and our mind and our heart posture, all right? So I'mma go ahead real quickly and go to scripture, and I'mma share with you all what else God gave me. So if you go to Ephesians chapter 5, verse 25, it says this: Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. You guys, and in my dream I had blemishes, my hair wasn't right. I mean, I just feel so unprepared, you guys. Okay, so this reference to not about the physical appearance but about the church being pure before the Lord, to be holy and to be set apart. To be without blemish, okay, to be without a mark or a problem. Even now, the Holy Spirit is— it is, it is showing me like it's very hard nowadays. It's very sad for us to really distinguish at times who's a believer and who is the person who is secular, because the body, um, as a whole has become so succumbed, you know, to the world's standards And many of us are afraid to stand out because of rejection, because of, you know, backlash, because of being called holier than thou, and so much more. Okay, I definitely have been— you know, people have not said this to me verbally, okay, that I come across, but I can discern that they probably feel like, oh, who she think she is? Like, it's not that I think I'm better than anybody by far, it's not that, but I know who I serve. I serve a good God, I serve a righteous God, I serve a God that I know that loves me conditionally, and I walk in that, and I'm confident in that, okay? And so you have to come to a place in order to be ready for your groom to be confident in his love for you. Not confident in his love for you because of what you have, because of how you look, because of, you know, things being perfect and laid out perfectly for him, right? But your heart posture. The Lord wants our heart posture to be pure. And then through that, everything else just shines through, okay? That's how it's supposed to be, right? He cleans us from the inside out. And I know that this message right now is not a very popular message, and many of you guys won't watch this full video, but that's okay. I'm going to be obedient to what God gave me to give you all. And he wants us to be consumed with our relationship with him. That's me, it's all of us who claim to be believers. Okay, and so as I said before, my dream, I was so consumed on the outward appearance that I feel unprepared for the groom, which was Christ. Okay, and so I'm gonna go to 1 Peter, um, chapter 1, verse 13. It's called Called to Be Holy. All right, so I'm gonna read. As I'm reading this, you guys, I'm gonna break down and put in here the points that, you know, that, you know, the Lord highlighted me to be able to break it down so you can understand it. When I read it, I understood it, but I want to really break it down so you— so that you all can get it as well. Okay, verse 13. Therefore prepare your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will— that will be brought to you at the revelation of Christ Jesus. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, meaning that before you were a Christian, before you profess Christ as your Lord and Savior, he wants you to let go of the former things, okay? This is a process. It is, okay? None of us get saved today and we arrive tomorrow. It is called sanctification, okay? God will begin to break things off of you. He will begin to groom you and prepare him, you know, and prepare you for himself, okay? I did a series and I wrote a book on it like last year. It's called Seize the Season. It's all about going from, you know, being a baby in Christ and then maturing into a mature believer. It is a process, you all, it's a process, okay? But with God, all things are possible. Verse 15: But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct. Verse 16: Since it is written, you shall be holy, for I am holy, okay? Verse 17: And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds. Conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. So what does this mean? So we should live with a respectful awe and fear of the Lord during our time on Earth. Knowing that we were brought from our sinful path with a precious price, which is Christ's sacrifice, his life, right? Not with silver or gold, that's temporary. Okay, so perishable means things that, that, that can fade away. Okay, Christ, he never fades away. He is imperishable. Okay, verse 20: He was foreknown before the foundation of this world but was made manifest in the last time for the sake of you. Who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and your hope are in God. Okay, so when I'm studying the word, I'm, you know, you know, going to like teach the word, I'm asking God, like my mind is like going to the questions that you may have or questions that I may have as a new believer or even a, you know, more mature believer, right? I'm like, how do we do that? How do we become a bride that is without blemish or without spots, right? You can't do it in your own strength. None of us can. Okay, so here it is right here, verse 22: Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth, for a sense— for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not a perishable seed, but, but of imperishable seed enduring forever. So what, what the Lord's saying here is that his word, you guys, the word of God is powerful. The word of God is alive. It is active. It can divide bone from marrow, okay? It can cut through the, you know, the, you know, the deepest wound. It can cut through, you know, whatever you battling with, soul ties. The word of God is powerful, okay? And so the more you immerse yourself in the word of God, the more you, you know, study, study, study the word of God, spend time with him, talk to the Lord, right? He will begin to wash away all those things over time, okay? And when things come up, the word of God is what anchors you, you guys. Like, whenever I'm going through whatever I'm— whatever, whatever's going on in my life, right? Whether it's good, up, down, whatever, God always speaks to me through scripture, through scripture. And the more of the word of God that I have in me, the more I am anchored, okay? This is how you become a mature believer in Christ. And for the— and like, for the, um, also for on those of you who are like new to the word of God, like, okay, where do I begin? Start in the book of John. The book of John is the best place to start. It talks all about Christ and miracles and Oh my God, it's a beautiful chapter. I read about 5 times at this point now. Amazing chapter, okay? I mean book, not chapter, but the whole book. And so start there, you know. If you are a little dry, go back to the Book of John, right? It will definitely inspire you, okay? So verse 24 says here, all, um, for all flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers Okay, and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord remains forever. The word of the Lord remains forever. And so my question for you is, are you ready for the bridegroom? If Christ was to come right now and say, you know, you know, come now to come take us home, would you be ready? Is your heart posture there? Have you done the best you can to truly honor him and serve him and reverence him, okay? We live in a day, y'all, and it's so true, where people are calling evil good and good evil, okay? Oh my gosh, y'all, it's so bad. And it's sad because it's not going to get much better, to be honest. It's just not, okay? Um, you know, so much going on right now with, you know, of course, you know, exposure. I'm not going to get into all that right now. I, um, did a word about 2 weeks ago about that, about how we going into judgment in 2025. And you know, I want to be caught on the right side, okay? I want to be judged in a way where I'm like reaping a harvest, not judged where I'm getting a spanking, okay? Um, and so God has already been judging the bride now, okay? So once again, are you ready for the bride? Okay, so the next part— now this part is good, y'all. All of it's good, but I see why God had gave me this, this particular song about almost a month ago. And so, um, I know that the longer you walk with God, it is inevitable that you are going to have dry periods with your walk with him. It does not mean that you don't love him or want to serve him, but you can hit a dry season in your life, right? I've been there, I've been there, you guys, okay? And it takes the Lord to truly, um quench that, okay? And so the Lord said, if this is you, if you are in a dry season, he said, think back. Think back to when you first got saved. Think back to the times God has rescued you time and time and time and time and time again, okay? And so about a month ago, um, this song that I heard by Chandler Moore called Omema— Omema, Omema— hope I'm saying it right. Um, but you guys, this song, when I heard it, oh my God, my spirit man was just leaping, leaping, because like I saw and I felt so much from this song. In this song, it talks about, you know, how God is good and he will leave the 99 to come and get that one. And people think that that song is just for lost souls. Yes, it's for that, but also for those who are perished, for those who are in a dry season, for those who need to be refreshed, right? God is going to come and refresh you, okay? So I encourage you to go and listen to that song, okay? Um, and so not only that, let me go back just a little bit to this scripture. Yeah, so go back and, um, hear that song. And so you go to the scripture, this is, uh, Matthew, um, chapter 18, verse 12, okay? Because what do you think if a man owns 100 sheep and one of them wanders away will he not leave the 99 on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the 99 that did not wander off. In the same way, your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little sheep shall perish. You guys, oh my God. So I hope she don't mind me sharing this story. She's on, okay, sis? I'm not gonna say your name, all right? So anyway, so my current coaching client, you guys, this is what God did for her, okay? She was going through a lot, okay? A lot, a lot, a lot. She had wandered off, okay? But y'all, God raised a standard, okay? I had no idea what she was going through. I had no idea her situation, um, you know, it got, you know, back to me through our mutual friends, um, but she was going through and I was like, what? Are you serious? And so the Lord had instructed, uh, my friend to call me and her sister to pray for her. And so, um, we did, y'all. We went into some like warfare prayers for her, okay? Um, because God was like, I need intercessors, I need y'all to intervene on her behalf because she has wandered far off from me, okay? She was the one that left the 99, okay? Um, and so, uh, we prayed for her, and then the Lord instructed she and I to work together for coaching. So she invested in coaching with me, and it's been— it has been powerful, okay? And I had no plan of like, you know, taking on any clients right now until this— until February. Um, but Lord was like, make room for her now, it's, it's a need. And my God, oh my God, y'all, oh my God. And so I told her, oh my God, like, raise the standard. And he came for you, okay? He came and he rescued you from where you was at. And she sees that now, right? God love her so much that he would, you know, put it on our hearts to just like pray for her, intercede for her, okay? So best believe that if you are in a particular season, God will put you on people's hearts to pray for you, okay? I have had it happen to me plenty of times where God would say, pray for this person, pray for that person, because— and like, at the time I didn't know they were in a, you know, dry season or a hard season, okay? Um, but later on I found out, okay? Part to this word as well, you guys, is this— this song is so layered to me. So not only did I see, you know, what God did for my, you know, my coaching client, but I think back to how God rescued me and how he saved me. But also, you guys, the Lord told me that with this exposure, with people being hurt and the sheep being scattered, he said I desire to heal what I have allowed to be revealed, meaning that he wants to rescue these lost sheep. He wants to bring them back into the sheepfold, and he's going to do whatever it takes to go back and get them, okay? And that song says, whatever it takes, whatever it takes. That song is powerful, y'all. It's so powerful, it's so beautiful. And, um, I begin to think about, you know, the victims who are coming out about everything is going on with, you know, entertainment um, everything going on in the body of Christ with people being abused spiritually, sexually, all of the above, right? God has a specific plan, y'all. He has a timeline of the thing that's going to take place over this next few years, okay? We're gonna see a lot happening next year, a lot happening next year, and he is going to go rescue that one, okay? And so when you hear this song, think about your own journey and think about the ones that God is going to save, okay? And then think about the ones who needs to be restored, who are spiritually dry right now, and I'm also praying for them as well. And so I'm going to go back just a little bit, um, I forgot one part up here on this particular word. And, um, the Lord told me again to make sure I ask you guys are you ready for the bridegroom? Okay, um, he said don't be like the Pharisees where you look good on the outside but was corrupted on the inside. It says, woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. Matthew 23:27. So Pharisees, like, they was like known for just being hypocrites, okay? Now I'm not saying that you got the hypocrites, that's not what I'm saying. Um, some people just need deliverance and they need healing and they need counsel, okay? Um, but for those of you who are so focused on the outside and not the inside, then yes, this, this is for you, okay? And so that is all I have, um, for this word. You got— there are so many words that God has been giving me over the past few months that I had not had time to release, okay? They're in my journal. Some of them I'm still holding on to for more revelation, and there are others that the Lord has already told me that I can go ahead and release, y'all. But I'll be honest, some of this stuff requires me saying people's names, and I'm not really a big fan of that, to be honest. Um, some people are okay with that, but My— okay, here my dilemma. Some of these things that God has showed me about certain situations and people, I know I'm called to, okay? I'm called to serve them in some kind of way. And I'm like, well, Lord, if I'm sitting here doing a video about these situations and people, I said, um, how am I going to be able to like really reach them? Like, there— it's like, will like cause them to not want to interact with me at all in the future? And, um, he told me, he said, no, it'll be the opposite because you're doing it in love and you're doing it under my authority that I gave you, right? And so I have to go back and meditate on some of my dreams I received over the past few months, you guys. Um, the Lord has not— how, how do I say it? There's some things that he put on my heart to share that are like imminent, that I have to share like ASAP, okay? Like this word right here came to me Sunday I meant to go live last night, but I was so busy with home, whatever. So I said, I'm gonna go live before the weekend to give you guys this word because somebody needs to hear this word. I don't know who this word is for, but God told me to share it, okay? Um, but the other words he would give me, well, he'd give me a choice, right? A choice on whether I should share that word or not. Um, and I have other dreams I've had too that, you know, it's not complete, that God wants me to kind of wait, marinate on them, and then share them later. Um, and so also, you know, I'm working, you know, I have my family, and so I'm not, I'm not a full-time, uh, social media person, okay? I have a life, okay? So I really don't like to just come up here and just put words out, put words out, put words out without really taking out time to sit with it, look at scripture, and make sure that I am releasing the word correctly, because that matters to me, okay? That matters to me. I don't want to just say a word and give y'all something just to be up here, um, and it's not fully prepared. Okay, so yes. So let me look at your comments real quick. Me, can you put this name or something in the chat? Yeah, Mrs. Lasha. So I'll spell it for you, it's O-M-M-E-M-M-A. I think I spelled it right. Let me look at my notes. Um, okay, I think it's just one M in the beginning. Let me see. O-M-E-M-M-A, and it's by, uh, Chandler Moore. I'll put his name up there, and I'm pretty sure some of you guys know who that is. He's, um, one of the singers from Maverick City. Okay. And as you guys know, some of you guys may know, God has many names, okay? If you look at scripture, you can go Google the names of God and you'll be able to see, um, different things that come up. And, uh, this is like one of the words that come up, Omima. Thanks, you're welcome, no problem. Uh, hello, thank you guys for saying my words will not pass away. Yeah, thank you Set Apart Poetry for joining and watching. Uh, the Doula, hello, hello, hello. Dr. Siobhan, hello. Not everybody— not missing anybody's comments. All righty, okay, so that's all I have. If you're just getting up here now, um, I'll leave up the replay up here on Instagram and also on YouTube and Facebook. Um, I'll probably be going live again, um, this Sunday evening to do a teaching for Christian leaders, for emerging and seasoned Christian leaders. Oh, speaking of that, um, I just launched a program called Empowered to Lead. Empowered to Lead, okay? It is a group coaching program for, um, leaders who are called to lead God's people in any capacity whether you're just beginning, about to launch out, or even if you are seasoned, okay? And what I've learned over the years is this, y'all. So as a therapist, okay, I've seen a lot of leaders in my, in my, in my, you know, in my— how do I say it— in my career, put it that way. So in my private practice that I had, it's not open right now, um, the Lord would send me leaders of all different— oh my God— races and nationalities. And oh God, it was beautiful to me though, I loved it, um, who had different, uh, that, whether it were prophets, pastors, teachers, event— I mean, marketplace ministry, you name it. And I was able to counsel them and help them, you know, to be whole mentally, emotionally, and also spiritually. Okay, um, and so I have a heart for leaders because I know firsthand the battles that we— I say we, I'm a leader too now— um, face, right? You experience so much opposition, spiritual warfare, right? It's a, it's a great responsibility, right? We can't do what we want to do, okay? I can't say what I want to say all the time, okay? Especially up here. So with that being said, um, I've always been asked before if I taught prophetic people, meaning about the gifts of the spirit, if I taught them about hearing God and all that. And you guys, I am very capable of doing that, but here's the thing. I have found that a lot of times they need more personal development, meaning in the areas of, you know, working on their anxiety, working on not comparison, you know, on rejection is a big one. Rejection, comparison, their character, right, their confidence, right. All those things are honestly linked to how you operate in your gifting. Okay, if you don't have that foundation and a confidence, right, that comes from God honestly and God alone, right, it will affect how you operate in ministry. It will affect how you operate in the gifts of the Spirit and how you hear and how you see God. Okay, and so my program is geared to help you to deal with those little things in your heart that many of us might not see when we see you. Okay, perfectionism is a big one. Okay, I'm not— not obeying God because you're fearful of being judged, because you're fearful of what others have to say. Okay, this program is for those who are ready to really engage in personal development. Okay, we'll have prayer. Okay, I'll say whatever God tell me to say to y'all, all that, but I'm going to give you the skills and tools you need to be a confident leader. And the program is 8 weeks long. Um, it begins January the 12th on a Sunday. We'll meet every Sunday for 8 weeks at 6 PM Eastern Standard Time. We record the courses, um, um, record, uh, every, um, session. But not only that, you, you, um, have, um, uh, be in the Facebook group and you'll be a part of the program forever. Forever. Okay. For a really, really good price, right? Right now you can join for only $247. That's it, $247. That honestly, that's nothing compared to what you're gonna get, okay? I know that for a fact that this program is well worth $3K. It is, because I'm gonna be pouring out a lot, okay? You're gonna have worksheets, you're gonna have assessments, you're gonna have, um, tools, strategy, support, feedback from me, okay? In our live session, it's gonna be amazing, okay? Um, and so people already trying to afford already, um, but on those who already signed up Um, thank you. I look forward to pouring into you. Um, if you want to join the program, um, the link is also in, um, the— my bio on Instagram. If you don't see it, just DM me, I'll send it to you. Um, I put the link up here on— it's on YouTube, and it's also— it'll be on Facebook too. So I encourage you, go look at it, check it out. If you have any questions about it, um, just let me know. Um, I did a free webinar— it's been about 2 weeks, um, ago— called How to Set Boundaries God's Way. I also have the replay. It was amazing. Oh my God, everybody loved it. I got so much great feedback from it. If you guys see how I teach, I have a YouTube library full of content, social media, Instagram, TikTok, wherever. I'm everywhere right now, okay? But when you in a more intimate setting, you get more, okay? When you more in more of an intimate setting, you can ask more personalized questions, you know, about yourself. I know that on social media when I'm live, not everyone's going to post a question about themselves because everybody can see it, okay? But, but in the group, you'll be able to ask those more personal questions. I noticed that then my live webinar was private, baby, they were asking questions, okay? They were asking questions, okay? Um, and so yeah, so it's called Empowered to Lead Um, the program enrollment is open. It closes January the 10th and we start January the 12th. Okay, um, session 1 is going to be all about anxiety. We're going to be doing assessments, we're going to be going over, you know, what causes you to feel anxious, going over fear. Um, you guys, it's going to be amazing, amazing. And then when you sign up, you also get a copy of my ebook called 10 Stumbling Blocks for Christian Leaders. Um, it is a book that I created last year, um, over 10 different areas that causes a leader to stumble. And it had the teaching in there and also a test in there to see where you are at, because God wants his leaders to be healthy mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Not just gifted, not just, you know, prophesying, not— he wants your character, he wants everything about you to embody him. Pretty much. Okay, so it's all I have for now. Um, hopefully the plan is to see you guys again on Sunday. I'm not sure what time yet, but, um, I have a teaching that's on my heart that I need to teach you guys. Okay, all right, so look at your comments. Anybody have any questions? You're welcome. All right, so I'm gonna pray us out and then I'm leaving. I'm gonna go to bed, y'all. Okay, almost 10 PM at night. Okay, so Father, I just thank you for your word. I Thank you, God, for those who came on, who are, um, watching the live, God. For those who will come back and watch the replay, God, I pray that, that this word would edify them, it would encourage them, God, and allow them to see, God, just how serious you are about your bride, God. Serious in a way, God, that you love us so much to correct us. You love us so much, Lord God, to meet us right where we are at. And so, God, I thank you tonight again. I pray for each and every single individual, God, that they will, um, continue to seek you, seek your face, and be in the word, Lord. Hallelujah. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen and amen. All right, you guys, I'm out. See y'all next time. Bye. Oh, bye, Facebook and YouTube.