Almost Scammed

I almost fell victim to a scam yesterday. I am feeling rather mad at myself for being so naïve and gullible, but this scammer knew what he was doing.  I am assuming it was a man, but it might not have been.  For ease in writing, I will use the masculine, however, I am aware it could have just as easily been a woman.

First he sent me a private message that appeared to come from my Christian mentor. I am taking an eight-month course with her, and she is so very in tune with the spirit. I am hoping to learn much from her.

The first message said that the Lord had laid some scriptures on her heart that she wanted to share with me, if I had the time. She also said she only had a few minutes, which of course made sense to me because she is quite a busy lady.  Here is the copied post:

God bless you..Am really busy but the lord said i should speak to you he says good things are coming your way and he gave me some bible passages to share with you just few minutes may i?

I should have realized something was up with the poor grammar and Lord not being capitalized.

I agreed, and so this post came next: 

The light of God will not depart from your life....The scripture says in Philippians 1:6, “He that began a good work in you will continue to perform it until it’s complete.” The good news is, you’re not a finished product. God is still working on you.

 

The next post:  hold on the words of God and he will Prosper you. "Behold i am the Lord,The God of all Flesh; Is there anything too hard for me to do? Jeremiah 32:27 .Where are you from, How old are you,What is your occupation?I will Pray for you,for your blessings are so near you...

I stupidly answered all of the questions, but of course a google search would turn up my email and my cell number, and the rest of my information. My hometown and occupation are written on the back of every one of my published books. Even still, I feel quite violated having just naively handing over this to such an evil person

Then this came:  God is opening the windows of heaven for you. He meets your every need according to His riches in glory by Jesus Christ. He is causing men to give unto you good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over. God has given you the power to get wealth. you are redeemed by the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.you are redeemed from the curse of the law. you are blessed in the field.

I mentioned that I was attending a conference from her organization in a few weeks and that went ignored.

Deuteronomy 31:6 - Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.There's nothing impossible for our lord Jesus....Take the limits off of God. This is the year for Him to show out in your life, to accelerate His goodness, and to thrust you to a new level. When you ask big, that’s not just being hopeful, that’s your faith being released, that’s what allows God to do great things.

Please Send me your email and number for daily Prayers and Prophecy as directed by the Lord for your time to shine alight is now. 

I stupidly gave that information. Ugh.

But I want you to know the truth my that Being prosperous is not about buying the most expensive items the world tell us we cannot live without. God wants His people, His children, to love and care for each other . James 1:27 The Christian who is pure and without fault, from God the Father's point of view, is the one who takes care of orphans and widows, and who remains true to the Lord--not soiled and dirtied by his contacts with the world

I responded that I have a heart to give.  I walked right into the trap.

I ike the way you think .. You are a giver , your kind is very rare this days

God will prosper you and elevate you if you work everyday with him through prayers and worship...When you take time to shine light into other people’s lives—you’re kind, you’re helpful, they feel your love—that’s what opens the door to their heart.

I have a word from God now for you .. Are you ready to obey the voice of God without hesitation and reap from the blessings of obedience ?

The Lord Put a word in my Heart for you . There is an Orphanage home i support in west Africa,They suffer from a great storm ,as they are just recovering from a fire accident....the Lord is calling you to sow a seed of faith by donating to them and he will give you abundance in whatever you request. I see a great upliftment coming to you dear Child of God. Are you willing to do the will of the Heavenly Father by helping his children today ?

The name of the orphanage is called LITTLE SHEPHERD ORPHANAGE HOME. https://www.facebook.com/LSorphanage/ ..... Like their page and send them a message telling them your intention to donate and how to do that

When you go to that page, and inquire as to how to donate, they want you to wire money through Western Union to Nigeria. Finally the light is starting to go on. When I asked why they didn’t have a direct website, they informed me that they were still working on that.  I told them I wasn’t sure how to do that. The response was to go to Wal Mart or Walgreens near me.  That is when I finally realized what was happening. No one in Nigeria is going to tell me to go to Wal Mart!  But to be sure, I ran it by my husband. He reminded me about a video my mentor had sent out a few weeks ago about a scammer. I had totally forgotten!

When I quit responding to the imposter, this came:

God bless you I will be here to pray with you after you do so... You have such a kind heart and God will always be by your side

I Pray for you today , God i Plea you extend your soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday. The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Those from among you shall build the old waste places; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. (Isaiah 58:10-12 NKJV)

Then I wrote this:

I see now that you are an imposter. It took me awhile, but whoever you really are know this: I cannot imagine what Jehovah God has in store for those who use His Word for filthy lucre. False Witness is an evil. I trust that my Abba Father will deal with you accordingly.

Funny, the posts quit coming.

So, after I quit beating myself up for being conned and lacking discernment sooner, I just can’t stop thinking about why someone would use God’s Word and prayer for financial gain. I know it is because I trust my mentor so much that I would have donated to a cause she believes in, but I just couldn’t imagine someone going to this extreme.  This person has to be enrolled in our course, or else he couldn’t have gotten my name to begin with.  That’s a lot of deception right there.

When I asked Holy Spirit why I didn’t discern sooner and needed my husband to straighten my thoughts, I was told, “You didn’t ask.”

I didn’t!  I saw my mentor’s beautiful picture and assumed the posts were really from her. The words seemed so Godly.  

So I asked, why didn’t You stop me sooner.  I was told I need to learn and be aware. There will be more imposters and false prophets and we can never assume because they speak the Word that their source is Jehovah God.

I feel ashamed at my gullibility and childlike trust. I am disappointed in myself that I gave so much of my information away (email , hometown, cell number). But of course anyone can find that information. It is out there in many places due to my writing work. But it is hard to not feel violated.

Thankfully, I didn’t send money to that fake orphanage, but keep wondering how long before I finally get it?

I know I still am a work in progress. I didn’t need a scammer to remind me!