Old Dog V

Back to: AT THE CIRCUS (Lakeland #8)

The Pruning

Bob Neumann, July 2008

I sit now to compose a description and narration of a VISION I had a month ago. What follows is the most graphic and intense vision I have ever experienced. I know many will be bothered and angered with what I must share. In my heart of hearts my only desire is to see my KING arriving on HIS WHITE HORSE in RIGHTIOUS TRIUMPH. I also know to see Revelation 19 I must be witness to chapters 2-18. I do not “gloat” over the carnage that is part and parcel of the judgments held in JOHN’S WORDS. Many would think so, but in truth I do not enjoy watching people suffer, and die. All my adult life I have been in the medical field, a “care giver”. I am only a tool to aid those in pain. There is only one HEALER, and it is HE who I serve.

Several months ago I had a vision. In some ways it was a montage of many scenes in my life over the last 35 years in EMERGENCY ROOMS and INTENSIVE CARE UNITS in 3 states. Which makes this “vision” all that more real to me than many who will be reading what I write, and have postponed until its appointed time. So now I start.

Like many of the visions that I have been walked through, I was actively involved. I not only “saw” and “heard” as most do in the SECOND HEAVEN. I also “touched”, “smelled” and even “tasted”. This last about “tasting” is one I wanted to mention, but it is a “memory” I recognized and it occurs in THE NATURAL, so it MANIFESTS in THE SPIRITUAL. So let me begin….

I was standing in a brightly lit area walking on a hard floor. Before me where numerous stretchers, each separated by curtains. I could hear the sounds of ventilators, monitors and the numerous unique sounds in a modern medical area we would find anywhere in “amerika”. Only I doubt if reality has ever bore witness to the sheer number of stretchers that lay before me to my right and left, going on far beyond what my eyes could capture. I had little time to ponder what I was seeing because then the SMELL and the TASTE ““HIT”“ me.

(Let me comment here…. in the natural, the sense of smell and taste are interlinked. We smell something which our “memory” ties us to something we greatly enjoyed we begin to salivate, and we anticipate and the “taste” is remembered. In the natural there may be nothing to trigger the actual thing to taste, but the “scent” creates it. On the other hand….. sometimes the “item” that produces the “scent” actually puts microscopic “bits” into the air.

When you breathe in the particles they enter both nose and mouth. This can stimulate both smelling and tasting which triggers a reaction. Apple Pie causes SALIVATION….. but then not all “reactions” are Pleasant.)

What HIT me was the stench of GANGRENE…. and I gagged as I always do. The stench of putrefied flesh is one impossible to forget. In the natural I have run into it too many times. Actually once is too many times…..

My first thought was that there must be hundreds maybe thousands here….

“ACTUALLY THERE ARE MANY MILLIONS IN NEED OF GREAT HEALING, OLD FRIEND.”, as I heard the wondrous VOICE of my LORD and KING. As I looked behind me I saw THE LAMB OF GOD and I fell to my knees and bowed my head as chills ran through me and I felt myself tremble uncontrollably. Then I felt HIS GENTLE TOUCH on my head as HE CONTINUED. “MOST DO NOT KNOW THE DANGER THAT SURROUNDS AND ENSNARES THEM”.

I stood and immediately HIS EYES CAUGHT MINE. The intensity of HIS GAZE held a sense of IMMEDIACY as we turned to look out upon these distant parallel rows of stretchers with what looked like PURE WHITE SHEETS. Only the STENCH that continued with each breath EXPOSED what was hidden behind sheets. As I looked I saw forms moving from stretcher to stretcher. Likewise I could hear occasional moans with shouts from farther down the hall. People were in pain I thought but was quickly corrected.

“THESE ARE NOT THE BODIES WHICH YOU SEE, BUT THE SOULS. REMEMBER WHAT IS WRITTEN….”

Immediately HE started to walk down the aisle and I followed trying to remember what verses HE was alluding to. I immediately searched my inner man which strangely was at peace while my conscious reason still trembled. My spirit was at PEACE because of THE MOST HOLY SPIRIT, THE RUACH HA KODESH was there with an answer waiting for me. The HERMANUETIC RULE OF FIRST MENTION…. all I had to do is remember a verse or ten….

Only I saw THE LAMB was now several paces down the aisle waiting for me. I knew what the goal was but I did not remember it clearly. I knew that it was about touching what was “unclean” as in diseased, infected, dangerous…. as in TOUCH NOT…. (the scripture where “unclean” is first used in the KJV is Lev 5:2)

² Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether [it be] a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and [if] it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty

The KEY was that the term “soul”… nephesh… which alludes to soul before person or body)

HE waited for me to catch up and moved to a stretcher on the left. When I got there HE stood silently at the foot of the stretcher, looking down. As I got there I placed a hand on the side rail, something I would normally do when I would first go to see a patient. Only I never looked at the head of the stretcher, because I did not want to see whatever “person” might be there. Instead I looked to THE LAMB and waited.

(it was here when I realized I was wearing a set of my scrubs… Caribbean blue if you want to know… THE LAMB stood in flowing brilliant white with GOLD… ankle length… no scrubs. I have not worn whites in 12-14 years… in THE NATURAL)

“WHAT WOULD YOU DO?”, HE ASKED.

Slowly I moved my eyes from HIS FACE to the slight mound made by feet under a sheet. The stench of GANGRENE, PUTRIFICATION had not abated and I was not eager to look under the sheet. Slowly I pulled up from the stretcher and folded it back so I could work.. Before me were two feet with toes. Now the right foot had 5 toes discolored in shades from light gray to deep purplish black. The great toe was black on it’s tip and purple to the fist joint. Toes 2 and 3 were black and shriveled, shrunken in size. Toes 4 and 5 were different shades of purple.

I wanted to touch both feet to check for circulation, but I had no gloves, and I really wanted a mask and a HALLS cough drop. But I had not seen any on my earlier glances. I looked back up to THE MASTER and HE simply nodded HIS HEAD.

So I did the basic examination checking pulses and capillary return. I thought how many times I had seen this over the years. In the NATURAL I knew what I was looking at and I stepped away from the stretcher and took a deep breath as I prepared to answer.

“There are five toes showing necrosis, two starting at…” …AND HE CUT ME OFF…

“I DID NOT ASK YOU WHAT WAS WRONG. I KNOW WHAT IS WRONG. I ALSO KNOW WHY IT IS WRONG. I HAVE KNOWN IT FROM THE TIME I LAID DOWN THE FOUNDATION OF CREATION. WHAT I ASKED OF YOU IS WHAT “YOU” WOULD DO”.

My immediate thought was “ME LORD?” which HE ANSWERED.

“YES YOU, WHY ELSE WOULD YOU BE HERE?”

“Amputate, mid foot”, I answered as HE turned away and walked to another stretcher. HE turned towards me and watched as I was looking for a sink to wash my hands. Something I do all the time…. have to do even when using gloves.

“HERE YOU NEED NOT WORRY ABOUT CONTAMINATION”, HE STATED with a small grin on HIS FACE. And I looked down at my hands which brought a laugh from my MASTER.

“BECAUSE I SAY IT IS SO.”, HE DECAIRED. “IT IS HARD TO BREAK WITH THE “RULES” THAT YOU PLACED UPON YOUSELF EARLY IN LIFE. IN YOUR CASE, THERE WAS A SIMPLE ROLE. ASEPTIC TECHNIQUE. TO MAINTAIN A “STERILE FIELD”. THE DESIRE TO BE FREE OF CONTAGION”.

“SO WAS IT WITH THE CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM AS THEY WENT INTO THE DESERT. RULES WERE ESTABLISHED FOR THEIR GOOD. MANY UNDERSTAND THIS TO SOME DEGREE TODAY. BUT MANY KNOW IN PART AND SAY THEY HAVE ALL THE “RIGHT ANSWERS”. THAT IS WHERE THE GREATEST DANGER IN THIS GAVE OF DECEPTION NOW IN PLAY”.

With that we turned and walked, this time toward a stretcher on the right side of the aisle. Once again I turned up the sheet and saw too feet. This time it was the left foot. It was swollen to 3-4 times its normal size. The toes were black and the foot was a deep purple with redness into the ankle. As I examined the toes I could see the hard area on the bottom of the second toe.

“TELL ME WHAT YOU SEE.”; THE LAMB ORDERED.

(this was different then the first case, I caught it….)

“We have an advanced case of wet gangrene. It differs from the first case which was dry gangrene. Dry gangrene is a slow process where the circulation is impeded and the tissue dies. Usually slowly and progressively.

In this case we have a probable infection in the second toe either ignored or treated improperly or inadequately.”

(as I said this a verse came from my spiritman from JEREMIAH about dressing the wound(s) of the virgin daughter inadequately)

“WHAT WOULD YOU DO?” came the QUESTION I had hopped not to get. As I looked at HIM time stopped, and I knew it. It was like we stood alone in a white place. HIS SMILE was gentle and HIS VOICE was calm and quiet. “WATCH ONE, DO ONE, TEACH ONE”, HE SAID calmly.

“LORD”, I began slowly and HE STOOD calmly.

(once again I knew HE was going to hear me out before explaining something important. I have done this at other times in the second heaven. Each time I had to get from point A to D with no idea where B and C were)

“I have no instruments, no sterile sheets, nothing for dressings…..”. HE had lifted HIS hand and I stopped. “USE WHAT YOU HAVE”, HE DIRECTED.

(I looked down to my ungloved hands and fingers. I had no scalpel, but I had no antiseptic to cleanse the foot. Yes I had seen it done. I knew what had to be done but to do it. I hesitated)

“WALK ME THROUGH IT” came an order I understood, but had never taken at this level. But I started as if I knew what I was doing. Which I did….

“We need to see how badly the necrosis has advanced. We also need to decrease the pressure to try to slow down that advance.” With that I used the tip of my right finger to show where the incision would start and the tissue between the great toe and the second toe split cleanly. As I pushed my finger into the wound it went through to the back of the foot. The reek of the purulent and necrotic stench was nauseating. My eyes teared and I gagged.

I looked up and HE again nodded and said, “WALK ME THROUGH IT”.

So I turned back to the foot and repeated the procedure, if I could call it that. “Each toe is separated by an incision though to the middle of the foot”.

With each incision fluid spurted outward sending more reek into the air.

“In doing so we relieve the pressure that has built up.” I squeezed the swollen tissue and more foul fluid flowed. No blood flowed from any of the four “incisions” that were made. “ We have “wet gangrene” advancing to “gas gangrene”. We need to amputate the leg.”

“WHERE?”

I took a deep breath, and began. “Maybe below the knee, but maybe safer to go above the knee to insure we are far enough above the corruption.”

“WHY?”.

“The procedure must be above the infection if we want a chance to save the patient”.

“WHY WOULD SOMEONE WAIT SO LONG TO SEEK HELP?”

(of course I “knew” what most of the answers were and I realized this “walk through” was being done for when I would try to write it down. So I continued.)

“An infection began in the toe and slowly spread upward. The infection destroying tissue as it progressed. Blood vessels were destroyed therefore making more tissue without circulation. More tissue died and the condition accelerated. As the tissue died, so did more blood vessels and nerve cells. Which is why there was no pain probably till now. So it could be ignored for as long as it has”.

“BECAUSE IT HAS BEEN IGNORED?”….HE WAS LEADING ME….

“We have to remove the leg to save the body”.

With that THE LAMB COVERED the feet with a sheet, and proceeded down the aisle quickly. As we walked the moaning became louder and the shrieks of agony were more frequent. We walked up to another stretcher and this time THE LAMB pulled the top of the sheet down to expose the torso down to the pelvis and the hip. Across the hip was a gapping wound oozing fluid and consumed tissue. Maggots crawled in and around the wound. Memories flashed through my head as I remembered. Slowly THE LAMB COVERED the WOUND and the person who had it. Like the two previous “stretchers” it was impersonal. No movement or sound from the “patient”.

“WHAT IS IT AND WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT?”

“It is a wound from a battlefield that was covered and left untreated.”

“YOU REMEMBER?”, HE ASKED.

“Yes, LORD. He and others had lain in a jungle hospital till politicians paid for their evacuation and treatment far from there home.”

“WHAT DO YOU NEED?”

It was a rhetorical question to which I asked the KEY QUESTION.

“Do we have enough time?”

HE shook HIS HEAD for “NO” and again started walking.

Such wounds could be healed with many weeks of expensive and time intensive care. Several surgeries and a lot of luck…..

We kept walking and passed many stretchers where there was movement. The moaning had been replaced by shouts and sheiks of agony. ON the next stretcher we walked to was a “person” screaming and writhing on the stretcher. Above the sheet was a right arm whose hand and fingers were swollen double in size and black in color. The arm was a gray color and the veins stood out, dark in color at the wrist. As I watched the darkened veins slowly marched up the arm and the swelling followed. After the area swelled it turned from gray to black. It was like time lapsed as I watched.

This was something I had never seen, but had read about in professional journals. I looked to my MASTER and asked, “Spider bite?”. Something venomous and I had no idea what to do.

“THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO”, HE ANSWERED me in a soft voice. “THE WOUNDING IN BATTLE THAT WAS NOT TREATED CAN BE, IN THE RIGHT PLACE WITH MUCH TIME. BUT THE PERSON BIT BY THE LIES OF TODAY HAVE NETHER A TREATMENT OR THE TIME TO DEVELOP ONE. SO WHAT DO YOU DO?.

“We treat the symptoms….” And I trailed off knowing it was a “pat” answer.

We walked farther and I realized the stench was fading. Now I could smell disinfectant and bleach. The shouts and shrieks continued. I looked from side to side at “humanity” as I passed it. We came to another stretcher where there was screaming and writhing. Once again HE pulled back to expose an abdomen completely unmarked. The color though was a sickly yellow. ICTERIC is the fancy term for “JAUNDICED”. Like the previous stretcher I watched as time sped up and I watched the abdomen quickly swell and stretch taunt, hard.

“WHAT DO YOU SEE AND WHAT DO YOU DO?”, came the orders.

“This is an “ACCUTE ABDOMEN”. (looking back I realized I did not precede with an “I think” or “it appears to be”. I was way outside my area of expertise.) We need to go in, decompress the abdomen and see where the problem is”. As I answered HE POINTED to the swollen abdomen and I slowly reached out with a finger and touched the center of it. Immediately a “geyser” of fluid shot upward and once again a gagging reek surrounded me. As I watched the abdomen slowly split and decomposing fat tissue flowed out followed by loops of swollen and blackened loops of necrotic bowel. Once again we had GANGRENE. But this time the blood flow to a large area had been stopped and as it “died” it began to literally decompose inside.

Once again HE covered the patient and we walked away. The only thing we could have done was to remove all the dead tissue we could find and “close up” the patient and treat their pain for the time they have left.

I was tired in mind and spirit. As before in other VISIONS I felt severely “inadequate”. All I could do was to follow HIM.

“ONLY ONE MORE OLD FRIEND, AND YOU JUST HAVE TO OBSERVE AND REPORT WHAT YOU SEE.”

We walked farther and again the smell returned to “hospital normal” and all I could hear was the sounds of ventilators and “pumps”. Finally we came to a larger area where a stretcher stood surrounded by machines. The “body” was completely exposed. What I was looking at was a decomposing “corpse”. The arms and legs where skeletal, covered with dried and rotting skin. In the moth clenched by the teeth was a tube hooked to a “ventilator” that cycled repeatedly but the chest did not rise nor fall.

The sternum had been split sometime in the past and two large tubes exited the “incision”. The upper went to a “heart bypass” machine and the second returned. Again the machine was running and I could see thick syrupy fluid flowing out of the “corpse” and then back to it. Around the bed IV pumps pushed in bags of IV FLUID and BLOOD from different access sites.

In my spiritman I was shouting “ABOMINATION, ABOMINATION” as HE took my arm and led me away in the second heaven to a place of quiet and calm.

“ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION AND ARTIFICIAL CIRCULATION GIVES YOU WHAT, ARTIFICIAL LIFE?. He asked, looking at me with a gentleness I needed badly. (I still do).

“LIFE IS IN THE BLOOD, BUT WHAT MANY HAVE DONE IS MADE A MOCKERY OF A GREAT TRUTH. THEY COVER THEMSELVES OVER AND OVER WITH IT. THEY PLEAD IT OVER THEIR CHILDREN, THEIR CARS, THEIR BUSINESSES, THEIR SITUATIONS, THEIR MISTAKES. BUT ARE THEY REALLY ASKING TO BE WASHED? FORGIVEN? I LAID DOWN MY LIFE AND SHED MY BLOOD SO THAT HE WHO ACKNOLEDGES HIS SINS, TURNS AWAY FROM HIS WAYS THAT WERE EVIL, AND SEEK ME AND ASK ME…. I WILL FORGIVE THEM. AND THAT IS WHERE SO MANY STOP AND NEITHER FOLLOW ME NOR LEARN FROM ME.”

With that we stepped into THE VINEYARD where ABBA was waiting.

“COME WITH ME MY SHEMUEL AND WALK WITH ME”, whispered my ABBA as HE put HIS ARMS around me and I felt HIS PEACE.

“WALK AGAIN WITH ME IN MY VINEYARD AND I WILL SHOW YOU MY VINE ONCE MORE.” We turned and walked as THE VINE spread out and weaved itself throughout THE VINEYARD for THE WHOLE VINEYARD IS ONE VINE. As we walked I realized I saw no grapes. Before I could ask, ABBA ANSWERED.

“THE HARVEST IS NEARLY FINISHED. THE GOOD FRUIT HAS BEEN SENT TO BE PRESSED AND STORED TO FERMENT PROPERLY. THE BAD FRUIT HAS BEEN THROWN INTO THE WINEPRESS OF MY WRATH. IN DUE TIME THAT PRESSING WILL BEGIN. BUT NOW IS THE TIME I MUST PRUNE MY VINE”.

“LOOK AT THE BRANCHES OF MY VINE. LIKE MOST VINEYARDS MOST STARTED AS GRAFTS.”

I looked and saw many engrafted branches. Once again “time lapse” occurred as the grafts “grew”. They grew wider and longer as leaves sprouted followed by clusters of grapes formed and ripened. I watched as several seasons and harvests passed. Again ABBA spoke.

“EVERY BRANCH HAS SEASONS AND OFTEN REQUIRE A LITTLE PRUNING. ALL ENDURE THE PRUNING SO I MAY HAVE MORE AND BETTER GROWTH. I HAVE PRUNED YOU SEVERAL TIMES MY SHEMUEL. BUT IN TIME A BRANCH REACHES IT’S END AND I PRUNE IT AND TAKE THEM TO ME.”

Again I watched as ABBA trimmed back greatly on a branch and covered the cut with a viscous fluid. Once again time lapsed and shouts sprang out from the area that had been cut and grew….

“THESE ARE NEW BRANCHES SPRUNG UP FROM THE OLD. YOU CAN CALL THEM DISCIPLES”.

We walked some more and came to a withered branch.

“SOMETIMES A BRANCH WITHERS. IT MAY BE A BRANCH OFF THE VINE THAT HAD PRODUCED SOME GRAPES FOR A SEASON. BUT SOMETHING HAPPENED THAT STOPPED THE LIFE OF MY VINE FLOWING AND BEARING FRUIT IN IT. NOW IT MUST BE PRUNED TO PREVENT THE CORRUPTION FROM SPREADING TO OTHER BRANCHES.”

Then HE asked me, “WHERE SHOULD I CUT?”. I looked at HIM, and knew. HE HAD TO CUT WHERE THERE WAS STILL LIFE.

“IN THE NATURAL MANY DO NOT KNOW THAT I HAVE PRUNED THEM. MANY WILL CALL OUT “LORD, LORD” AND FAIL TO UNDERSTAND THAT THEIR WAS NO LIFE IN THEM. MANY HAVE “TASTED” OF THE POWER OF MY SPIRIT THAT FLOWS THROUGH MY VINE, AND TURNED AWAY. IN HEBREWS IT SAYS I WILL CUT THEM OFF AND CAST THEM AWAY TO BE BURNED.”

“I KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT SOMETHING YOU WILL FIND PLEASURE IN SHEMUEL. YOU WILL REMEMBER THIS AND WHEN ONE OF THE TWO YOU HAVE WALKED WITH WILL WRITE ABOUT THE PRUNING THEY WERE REQUIRED TO DO, YOU SHALL TELL OF THIS VISION AND PASS IT ON. EVEN TO THOSE WHO HAVE CAST YOU AWAY. THERE BLOOD IS ON THEIR OWN HEADS. THEN YOU WILL EXPLAIN WHY BOTH HOUSES SUFFER PLAGUE.”

“INTERESTING QUOTE, DON’T YOU THINK MY SHEMUEL. SHEMUEL, MY SHEMUEL YOU MUST NOW BECOME MY YEREMYAH AND WATCH YOUR PEOPLE SURROUNDED AND DESTROYED. IT WAS FOR THIS VISION I MADE AND FORMED YOU. HOW MANY OTHER OF MY SERVANTS WOULD HAVE SEEN AND UNDERSTOOD AS YOU DO?”

With that the vision ended.

PS…. I have spent the last 6 hours reliving and writing down what I was shown. I suppose many might need explanations. I am not sure I can do that at this time. In obedience I finish this and post it.

Selah

Bob Neumann

Marion, NC

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