Then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil. I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. | Deuteronomy 11:14-15

I was very happy to turn over the calendar today from the month of March, entering into April. For myself, and I believe many others, the month of March was an intense time with a lot of warfare and opposition. However, even amidst the very opposition we may have experienced, I believe that the Lord was strengthening us. We will be found coming up out of our wilderness season, leaning on our Beloved (Song of Songs 8:5). His desire during that time of “wilderness” was to prepare and establish us for the new oil and abundance that He is getting ready to pour out.

The Lord does not waste our pain. Through the stretching and trials that we have endured, we have been made stronger. We are now prepared for the “new” that He is ready to entrust us with. Mark 2:22 says that, “no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.” We are becoming new wine skins in this very hour, in order that we may be able to contain the new, fresh wine and steward the increase well.

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life” (Proverbs 13:12). There is such a refreshing and renewal that is taking place right now. The Lord is reviving weary hearts back to life, and He is healing hope deferred.

I feel such a sense of joy and peace as we not only physically advance into a new month, but also begin to enter into this brand new season ahead. The hardness of the previous month has lifted, and we entering into a time of singing and rejoicing!

See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land. The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance. Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me
(Song of Songs 2:11-13).

I heard the Lord say, “April abundance,” and I believe that He is desiring to send a sweet message to His Bride. He says, “I will now send My sweet rains of refreshing and cleansing upon My people in the month of April. These rains will wash away the pain, weariness, and heartache from the previous seasons that you’ve experienced.”

You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance. Your people settled in it, and from your bounty, God, you provided for the poor (Psalm 68:9-10).

I believe that many surprises will suddenly spring forth in the month of April, including surprises of physical and emotional healing that some have been contending for, even for many years. Yes, know that the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (James 5:16b). “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard” (Isaiah 58:8).

Many have continued to stand and contend for God’s promises, even in the midst of great, personal pain and misunderstanding. Lift your eyes, O weary ones, for your redemption draws near (Luke 21:28b). Not for a moment has the Lord left your side or forsaken you.

I am reminded of the poem, “Footprints in the Sand.” It tells of a man who had a dream, and in the dream, he was walking on the beach with the Lord. As he walked on the shore, reflecting on his life, he noticed that during some of life’s most difficult moments there was only one set of footprints in the sand. In the dream he questioned God, asking, “Why did you leave me during the times when I needed you most?” The Lord replied, saying to the man, “When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you” (“Footprints in the Sand”).

The Lord is our burden bearer, and even now, He is breaking chains that have sought to keep us bound. Our Father is removing those heavy burdens that have weighed down His children. I feel the Lord’s heart of compassion and encouragement extended so strongly towards those who have felt heart-sick and even bewildered by all of the adversity that has taken place. Be encouraged! Our Savior has seen every tear that you have ever cried, and He is rushing on the scene like a mighty warrior.

Yahweh is a warrior, Yahweh is His Name (Exodus 15:3). The Lord is strong and mighty in battle. He is bringing His beloved Bride into a season of rest, peace, and great refreshing. For where you were previously not able to let down because of the consistent battle, now you will be able to rest and drink deeply of the Lord’s abundant peace. He, Himself, is fighting for you!

You have come through the fire of the last season, forged and refined like the gold, and you are about ready to see and experience the Lord’s goodness like never before! What He is about ready to release in your life will bring you such joy and restoration that you will say, “How could I have doubted the Lord’s great goodness and love for me, even for a moment?”

After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before (Job 42:10).

Like Job, you are about to receive “double for your trouble!” Those who have sown in tears are about to reap much joy (Psalm 126:5). The Lord is sending the sweet, April rains of abundance. Listen closely, do you hear it?

And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain” (1 Kings 18:41).