A Year For Leaves

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Greetings,

Yesterday I was blessed to minister at Everyone’s Church in Mount Vernon, Washington. I spoke in two sessions on the prophetic season of the church. Today I am going to begin blogging on the prophetic direction I am sensing in this season for us as the people of God. As many of you know, I have some fruit trees in my back yard that very often testify to me prophetically concerning the seasons at hand. One tree of significance is an apple tree with six grafted branches. Each branch is a different kind of apple. God told me to plant this tree in 2000 as a prophetic sign of His church with one root, one trunk, but a diversity of branches that produce a diversity of fruit. Last year, this tree grew sideways and not up. It was a year for the church to seek connections in a reaching out to one another way. I addressed this in one of my Leader’s Blog, The Broader Church (https://ted4leaders.com/a-broader-church/). This year there is little fruit, but the leaves are starkly alive and present a striking testimony of life! Each of my fruit trees are the same this year. When I look at them, I see little fruit, but a unique freshness to the foliage that displays their beauty. Perhaps this year is a year for healing the nations. God says that our lives have fruit for each season, but our leaves are for the healing of the nations. I believe that this is a prophetic season of healing more than it is a season of great fruit.

Ezekiel 47:12 “Along the bank of the river, on this side and that, will grow all kinds of trees used for food; their leaves will not wither, and their fruit will not fail. They will bear fruit every month, because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

Revelation 22:1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

I believe that this is a year of leaves. What are the leaves of the tree? The leaves of the tree provide shade from the heat. They are the part of the tree that reaches out to the world. They are the part of the tree that can be seen. The leaves of the tree can be read in the same way the leaves of a book can be read. What is it about our lives that can be read by the world around us?

Jeremiah 17:7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. 8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.

The testimony of our life is one of life and healing when we trust in the LORD and put your hope in Him. Our lives will be a testimony of our connection to God. We won’t fear the circumstances of the day, but we will exhibit a testimony of life in all things. We won’t be anxious when things seem in drought. The natural circumstances of our world will not determine our future. We will yield fruit for the season at hand.

Our trust in the Lord is a testimony to the world around us. The secret to our trust in the Lord is always found in our adherence to Him in all things. Are we planted in Him? Or are we planted in the testimonies of the world around us?

Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.

It is the testimony of our lives that reveals the story of our lives. Is our story one of wounding? Or, is our story one of being healed by God in all things? If our story is one of being healed, we will bring healing to our world. As I have already stated, the leaves of the tree can also be likened unto doors. The doors of the temple that Solomon built were said to be doors by use of a Hebrew word than can also be translated as leaves (1 Kings 6:31-35). That same word is used in the book of Psalms in reference to the testimony of our lips.

Psalms 141:3 Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.

The door of our lips is expression of our lives as a testimony to our world. I believe this is a season of being healed to bring healing to our world. Our lives are a story to the world around us. The testimony of our lives is to be a testimony of healing. These are the leaves of our lives.

Blessings,

Ted J. Hanson

This is a prophetic message by Ted J. Hanson for 2021. This message was preached at Everyone’s Church in Mount Vernon, Wa. on May 30, 2021. This message was preached twice, and these are those messages: