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Day 149, “To Pursue or to Lean/Rest?”

Posted in Under-the-Influence, tagged , , , , , , on January 14, 2025| Leave a Comment »

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One of the best strategies the enemy uses against us is to keep us in a “do loop” of pursuing God rather than resting or leaning on Him in faith.  He causes us to rely on our sense of “being saved or having God at our center.”  When we no longer sense the Lord’s presence we gear up to pursue again. I have seen this become the default setting of so many believers. This becomes a new lifestyle…always in pursuit, never apprehending.

This is different than the Lord hiding Himself so we will indeed press into His Presence and His word.  Instead this is entering a traffic circle of activity to pursue Him and never coming to the exit: never coming to a place of resting or leaning on Him.  It is a place where our confidence in ourselves and our actions reasserts itself over our faith in Him or His word. We trust in what we feel or experience instead of what is conveyed in the word about Him or His ways or character.

Second Timothy describes this situation as follows:

“… they are forever inquiring and getting information, but are never able to arrive at a recognition and knowledge of the Truth.”  2Tim3:7

We become like hamsters on an exercise wheel, a treat extended before us (of gaining a greater sense of His Presence), but we never recognize we have received it…but why is that?  Because the basis for recognizing we have received something has moved from the realm of faith to something more tangible and temporal.  It becomes something of the flesh that is under our control. It is an emotional zeal which leads us to deception. It becomes works.

The danger here is that the believer has actually moved from faith in God, to faith in themselves and their activity.  It actually wars against the truth of God and muddies our perception of the spiritual realm!

Our focus should be to believe, rest, lean, and peace…

Here are just a few Scriptures to recalibrate and focus our faith that we can employ to be able to rest and lean on God.

Colossians 2:5

“For though I am away from you in body, yet I am with you in spirit, delighted at the sight of your [standing shoulder to shoulder in such] orderly array and the firmness and the solid front and steadfastness of your faith in Christ [that leaning of the entire human personality on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness].”

Galatians 3:3

“Are you so foolish and so senseless and so silly? Having begun [your new life spiritually] with the [Holy] Spirit, are you now reaching perfection [by dependence] on the flesh?

Phil 2:13

“[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight.”

Phil 4:7

“And God’s peace [shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace] which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Isaiah 26:3

“You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because He commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.”

Two parting thoughts:

A favorite theologian, Oswald Chambers, once remarked that “when a person fails in his Christian life, it is usually because he has never received anything.”

It is so easy to get sped up in our Christian walk and forget our posture is one of continually receiving the redemptive life of Christ through the Holy Spirit. It is staying humble, and hungry, but realizing there is a flow and pattern to this Christian life. Like the river Jordan it is first flows into us, and then flows out as a witness and ministry.  This is not a passive reception but an active engagement by faith with thanksgiving!!!

The second thought arose as I was meditating on Psalm 139:7-10…

“Where could I go from Your Spirit? Or where could I flee from Your Presence?  If I ascend up into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol (the place of the dead), behold You are there.  If I take the wings of the morning or dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall Your hand lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.”

Do you truly understand you cannot get away from God?  Yet we become convinced He has left us. We are so enamored with our actions to pursue God… but wait, instead begin to claim Him as the God of your heart. Worship Him, draw near by faith, realizing you deserve nothing, but He has already made the way for you to enter in to His presence. 

If you were an airplane… He has laid the runway, created the heading, structured your frame and set your flaps.  He is the light before you on the runway,  and He provides the loft and lift under your wings….

Simply come before Him and believe…

“Light is sown for the righteous and strewn along their pathway, and joy for the upright in heart [the irrepressible joy which comes from consciousness of His favor and protection].”  Ps 97:11

Most importantly here, am I telling you to not pursue God…?

Not exactly, I am saying you will find Him when you believe, lean, and trust that He is there… near you, within you, and hopefully upon you.  You don’t need to make it happen.  He already has!

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Day 148, The Heart that is 100% Man and 100% God…(and yet He allows you to move Him)

Posted in Under-the-Influence, tagged , , , on January 7, 2025| 1 Comment »

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There is a difference between us having the ability to change God in some substantive way, either by our righteousness or our sin, and our ability to move God.

We cannot change God.  He is the Lord God and He changes not.  But He is not impervious to our needs or wants or desires.  It is important to note this distinction.

Scripture shows us over and over, God is moved by the prayers and cries of His people, even sometimes those who don’t technically seem to be His. 

Recall how, in Genesis 21, the cries of Ishmael reached the Lord as he was about to expire as they were cast into the wilderness. Then the Lord caused Hagar, his mother, to see a well and to give her son water thereby saving their lives.

Why is it important for us to understand this distinction, that while we cannot change God, He is moved by us?  I believe to not understand this causes us to take offense at God and what He chooses or does, and to even become hardened in our hearts because we think He is unmoved… please allow me to elaborate.

My daughter passed away from a brain tumor in October 2023 after fighting this tumor for 7 years.  After three surgeries and chemo and radiation, what began as a slow growing category 2 tumor mutated into an aggressive stage 4 tumor, that took her life.

Complicating this battle was having hormone increases because of childbirth (she delivered two children during this timeframe, accelerating that tumor’s growth.)

As believers and prayer warriors we all , with friends around the nation and even world, prayed, petitioned, declared, strategized and beseeched the Lord for healing and deliverance from this adversary.

After such a lengthy battle with three different surgeries, our daughter passed and we were exhausted, confused, disappointed that our prayers seemed to go unanswered, and basically we felt like even after 25 years in full-time ministry we knew nothing! We were empty. We felt like we had failed to move God in our prayers.  We were wrong.

By His grace, more than a year later He has restored us, revealed to us many things and has set us back upon our spiritual feet again. We are moving forward in Him.

From that time of breaking and crushing, we are changed greatly.  In that regard I read the words of Mary and Martha in John 11:

“Lord if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

Jesus was not unmoved by their words or their sorrow.  In fact, He wept! But I do not see this as has been portrayed in many commentaries as Jesus being angry at the destruction and evil in the world.

I see this instead as Jesus, knowing all things and seeing all truth, realizing the limit of their faith in Him like a boundary set in stone.  He faced their ignorance and unbelief and challenged it head on….

Yet He wept. For me this is about the event having an impact on Him personally, and it moving Him in His emotions, yet Him not allowing it to deter Him from the greater work that the Father wanted to manifest of Jesus being the Resurrection and the Life. I can’t imagine a more difficult time for Jesus (except for the Cross of course), in that the situation precipitated His full feeling yet also full obedience to the Father.

We see this type of situation unpacked in Hebrews 5:7.

“In the days of His flesh, [Jesus] offered up definite, special petitions ]for that which He not only wanted but needed] and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him Who was [always] able to save Him [out] from death, and He was heard because of His reverence toward God [His godly fear, His piety, in that He shrank from the horrors of separation from the bright presence of the Father].”

What was the singular motivation of Jesus in this and every situation?  Certainly obedience was part, He said it Himself in Hebrews 10: 7,& 9…

“Here I am, coming to do Your will oh God…”

But also He shrank from any separation from the Father – that had to mean in any departure from the Father and His will.

Beyond any desire of His own to give comfort to Mary and Martha in their grief, He was called to strengthen and challenge the borders of their faith – without which no one can please God. He denied His own grief at their lack of faith and belief, and acted as the intermediary with the Father that He was called to be.

It was more profitable eternally, for Him to have allowed this loss, than to waive the opportunity to really stretch their faith to the specifications of the Father.

I see this same work having taken and still taking place in my husband and I.  On so many levels we could justify our prayers as “giving the Lord the most glory’” if He healed our daughter.  Only later could He show us many reasons why that linear plan was not in His will.  And that is what all things have merged into for me, is understanding that I am called to be conformed to His will in purpose, thought, and deed.

That is the true litmus test of my servanthood and discipleship. Am I willing to be conformed like that…

May this short narrative provide a spark of understanding for each reading it…

God is moved by your heart and needs and prayers…He is moved, just as Jesus wept.

But, often, there is more being worked of eternal consequence than can be understood in the situation temporally.

But if we allow the Lord, he can expand our understanding as we allow our faith in Him to arise and take flight!

This year, 2025, allow that as never before!  Take down every obstacle to believing Him by faith!  To do so means an opening to pleasing Him, living by faith, gaining greater access to grace, making us well, restoring us, gaining credit as righteousness, and walking into the full destiny before you as a descendent of Abraham

Do a quick word study of faith and begin to see it is the umbilical cord of your Christian walk!  And then be willing as Christ was to lay down your own perspectives and to pick up the very will of God in conforming to His will in thought, perspective, and action.

As it was in Jesus, this was the place where righteousness and peace kissed,

As He is, so are we in this world. Amen.

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Day 147, Cornerstone Influence

Posted in Under-the-Influence, tagged , , , on December 9, 2024| Leave a Comment »

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“But be doers of the Word [obey the message], and not merely listeners to it, betraying yourselves [into deception by reasoning contrary to the Truth].” Jas 1:22“There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death.” Prov 14:12

“To you then who believe (who adhere to, trust in, and rely on Him) is the preciousness; but for those who disbelieve [it is true], The very Stone which the builders rejected has become the main Cornerstone,…” 1Pet 2:7

“Because of and through the heart of tender mercy and loving-kindness of our God, a Light from on high will dawn upon us and visit us to shine upon and give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death to direct and guide our feet in a straight line into the way of peace.”  Luke 1 78-79

The Dangers:

– Reasoning contrary to the Truth

– A way which seems right

– For those who don’t believe

– A Light that gives light to direct our feet

…(These are points to consider as we progress)

Is where we started our journey with the Lord different than where we are today? (Talking about the quality of your heart here and remaining tender.)

Like a race where a baton is handed off from runner to runner have we been handed a baton of error? A tactic of the enemy …? Am I in the wrong lane and running for the enemy?

It is time for the Body of Christ to understand that we have an enemy who prowls around like a lion, seeking whom he may devour – and he does not cease.

He wants you to become hardened in your heart by trials, and difficulties and to take offense.

He wants your mind to stop being renewed by the word of God, and instead for you to no longer go on with God, but rather be stuck!

More important than what you think you know in the word of God is the quality of your heart before God. Your trust in the character of God. Your willingness to submit….

The day you were saved your mind received the light of God, and thus you knew what you didn’t know before, because of His light.

But when life rushes in, deals with us harshly, when we are battered and broken…we can become hardened. We think we are just becoming savvy and careful, but truly we are becoming cynical, distant, and hard, not to only situations and people – but actually to God Himself.

Our greatest need at that time is to recognize we have become hardened. We have closed ourselves off and moved into independence.  We need to repent and turn around and change our thinking, not only about our situations, but about our orientation and focus on God.

In that regard, I direct your attention to the Cornerstone Principal in Architecture.  1Peter 2:6-8 discusses the Chief Cornerstone, Who is Jesus Christ.  But there are some things that will help us to apply this Principal…:

The architectual example of the Cornerstone in building had three distinct characteristics from other stones used in construction. Knowing these will open our understanding to this metaphor for Christ.

Historically, the Cornerstone was the very first stone to be set in the building process.  Measurements were taken to ensure proper alignment of the rest of the structure. While in earlier times alignment was based on astronomical points of the compass, for sacred structures the alignment should be based on the word of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit.

The same principal then applies to the Body of Christ and being a abode for God.  Our orientation always cues off of Jesus our Lord, and the Holy Spirit’s leading.  This is something we never outgrow, but its absence can cause independent  action and decisions which will lead us astray.

So as a Body of Living Stones being built up into the abode of God we never cast off or leave our Cornerstone!  He is the continual Light that shines so we may not sit in darkness, and He guides our feet to the way of peace.

In ancient building rituals, often a sacrifice such as wine, grain, or water or even blood was poured atop the cornerstone as it was dedicated to the gods…. Even in later times, those stones were hollowed out and documents or literature was placed inside them. Sometimes the stones were inscribed with the name of the owner, or the builder and the year it was built.

Imagine now, as your are a living sacrifice, your life being laid down on the Cornerstone, so you can pick up His life and walk it out.  He has chosen you and put His Name in you for His glory and identification. Inside you are hidden vital documents concerning His eternal word…! But is is important, to keep this Cornerstone continually before you, even as the focus of your life.  All things are to proceed from His word and Spirit and His will! 

There is not a day where we dictate to Him the plan or the action.  This would be reasoning contrary to the Truth which would bring us into deception!

The concept of a Cornerstone was also to lead one into celebration. The cornerstone placement was one of prominence, leading to a recognition and valuing of the structure. In the same way, we recognize our Cornerstone, Jesus Christ, as our Head and Chief among Ten Thousand.  He is the Alpha and Omega. The First and Last. He is the Firstborn among all creation, worthy of all our praise. We take our placement, our array, our position and orders from Him. Like a Divine Guide-on, we are arranged via Him. As He is, so are we in this world! 

Think of the Tabernacle structure as it revealed the placement of the Tribes of Israel around the Arc of the Covenant.  In the same way, we find our place and identity in Christ, in deference to Him. 

It is not my gifting’s that determine what I do, but it is Him through the Holy Spirit that determines both my gifting’s and their subsequent divine opportunities for manifestation.

Most intriguing, concerning the Cornerstone, that is Jesus, is that it was the very builders of the Temple who rejected Him.  I cannot imagine that occurrence during any building project of a natural, historical origin. The builders would simply set the cornerstone that was prepared.

Here, however, for the Temple of the Most High, the Jewish builders thought better. They were offended at Christ and would not put their trust in, or believe in Him. Sadly for them. He became the Chief Cornerstone regardless, and they had to deal with that spiritual truth, eternally.

There was a day when you and I became saved, and on that day Truth and Light entered our hearts. We thus began to know God.

But where are we today?  Is that Truth and Light still fresh and welcome and present in our hearts in the same manner?

You see it is we that change. Our perceptions of truth, our openness to receive: these can change. We reflect the conditions of the Parable of the Sower in the soil of our hearts (Luke 8:12-15), and our very thoughts about those situations can either harden our hearts to God, or make us humble before Him.

The choice is ours, but it is a choice with eternal consequences that is borne out over and over again by Biblical examples.

Have I heard truth but it is being carried away by the devil that I may not believe?  Have I fallen into trial and temptation because of not developing a root in the word of God and Christ? Or have I heard the word but it is being choked from bearing fruit for the Kingdom because of my attending and caring more for the pleasures and riches of this life?

Or against all others am I like the seed sown in good soil of the heart, holding the word fast in my heart and steadily bringing forth fruit with patience?

The diagnosis of all these soils can be readily seen when we look at what position and elevation the Cornerstone occupies in their heart.  Given proper focus, belief, and obedience we will serve our Cornerstone with joy and gladness and not reject Him.

But there is always before me because of life situations, a danger that lurks. Will I try and slide into the seat of the Cornerstone? Or will I allow Him to take and retain His rightful place in my heart?

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Day 146, “The Blessing of Brokenness”

Posted in Under-the-Influence, tagged , , , , on November 4, 2024| Leave a Comment »

“And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder.” NKJV

“For all those things My Hand has made, and all those things exist, say the Lord.  But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and he who trembles at My word.”  Isaiah 66:2 NKJV

“If we freely admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to HIs own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action].  1Jn 1:9 AMP

“For those whom He foreknew [of whom He was aware and loved beforehand], He also destined from the beginning [foreordaining them] to be molded into the image of His Son [and share inwardly His likeness], that He might become the firstborn among many brethren.” Rom 8:29 AMP

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It is ignorance that causes us to resist Him…

Last post I shared with you how our understanding of sin can cause error and confusion if we think vaguely in terms of simply missing the mark.  We are very apt to excuse much of our thinking and being, and fail to see our sin because we do not define sin from the same perspective as the Lord.

I believe sin is more accurately described as: not conforming to the Lord’s will in purpose, thought, and action. And this is further supported by Scripture.

I want to develop that understanding here along the following precepts:

  • for every person in the world there are only two choices
    • brokenness
    • crushed
  • being broken will draw the blessing and attention of the Lord
  • in saving us it is necessary for the Lord to also remake us and mold us into His image
  • ultimately this process is necessary for every person who comes to Christ in salvation, and it is a blessing though we don’t always understand that

So we begin:

– In Matthew 21:44 we see that whoever falls on this Stone (which is Christ – the Cornerstone), he will be broken to pieces.

When we look at the word used above for “broken” it is the Greek pipto, and means to alight. Think of it as a butterfly alighting on a flower, or an airplane coming in for a landing. Unfortunately, neither of these examples convey the reality of what happens when we come to Christ in submission.  We are very different from Christ, and our coming to Him is as unique and individual as our fingerprints. The problem is that in being so different, even fleshly, we each must change. To be able to be part of the Body of Christ our salvation event sets in motion a series of changes that we are both unware of and perhaps unapproving of.  Salvation is bigger than we perceive or grasp.

That is the one who comes to Christ for salvation… he is broken.  In unpredictable ways and depths, he is broken: it is the only way to begin conforming him to the image and likeness of Christ.  As you can imagine, this is an internal conformance of your soul (your heart and mind, will, intellect, and emotions.)

The other person, not seeking Christ or salvation… if he remains in that posture of defiance and resistance… he will encounter the winnowing, crushing of the Lord. He will be scattered like dust.

Rather than dealing with the thoughts of readers at this time as far as either the fairness or unfairness of the above discussion on brokenness or crushing, let me move on to the next point.

– Brokenness draws the blessing and attention of the Lord: Isaiah 66:2.

Let me just backup to Isaiah 66:1 and then 2. The Lord is presenting a statement of fact, and then posing a question.  The fact: His deity: “Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool.”  The question: “What kind of house would you build for Me? And what kind can be My resting place?”

In light of His fact: I am God, He asks, what kind of house can you provide?  It is not referring to a physical house, but rather the tent that is ourselves… and how insufficient that would be for Him (without modifications). He goes on to say, all these things (us), My hand has made and have come into being [by and for Me].

“But this is the man to whom I will look and have regard; he who is humble and of a broken or wounded spirit, and who trembles at My word…” Isaiah 66:2.

The interlinear rendering of the words broken or wounded are actually, stricken or smitten, maimed, or dejected.

I had occasion to revisit this Scripture in Isaiah 66:2 and the meaning of “contrite” after my only daughter passed away. I thought it meant sorrowful or filled with regret.  When I saw “stricken”… it was exactly how I felt. Stricken by the loss, even stricken by the Lord.

But even in that season of being stricken or smitten, I could take comfort that my condition was drawing the attention of the Lord. He knew where I was, and how I was feeling. He was not remote or uninvolved.  On the contrary, He was Personally involved, although I could not sense it at the time.

When you find yourself wounded or broken, you are in gaining the Lord’s devoted attention, maybe like never before.  Contrary to all of your senses, He is listening and attentive to your needs, your heart, and your prayers.  He is not surprised by what you cry out, but He does expect that you will remain open to Him and not close your heart. He wants your trust! He wants you to believe He is present… because in His Presence is fullness of joy!  It is a soothing balm to your wounds! It is a lifter of your head!

– You are destined to be molded into the image of His son, and share inwardly His likeness.  You may not have understood this when you received Christ as your Savior.  You may have simply decided you needed a pain-free life, or His friendship … we all come to Christ for so many various reasons, but very few of us understand His purpose that gets underway to make us what He wants us to be…

Then we live for a time, plodding along as people unchanged.  But then we begin to see His hand and know His pressure in our life. Like the tide, it can be in and then out again, a filling up and a drawing down. Then something difficult ensues and we are challenged by the Holy Spirit to forgive, release, not be embittered, to reconcile, to pray… any number of things that would cause every worldly intention still operating in our heart to balk and stand firm.

Now you are in the tall grass of God! And He is working on you like a chiropractor adjusting and moving and straightening, not your limbs, but your very self! Your heart and your soul. Stretching you to line you up with Christ Himself so that you are submitting to His will and aligning with His own plans and desires. You are letting go and putting off self, and putting on Christ!

What is the blessing in this brokenness? You are becoming more and more His.  The fellowship that you have, which is a distinguishing mark of Christians, is growing and it is with the Father and His Son (1Jn 1:3)

It is here, from a place of brokenness, where self has been put off, and the New Man put on that the life of the Holy Spirit can minister out of us, like that Living Water that flows forth from us. When I am still full of self and selfish thinking, I often quench the ministry that the Holy Spirit would want. But the brokenness of self is like that alabaster perfume bottle being broken, so the unguent and fragrance of the Lord through the Holy Spirit can come forward…

Like Madame Jeanne Guyon says, “God gives us the cross, and the cross gives us God.”

Brokenness is a gift that keeps on giving, even through the pain. Because it is an agent of transformation. It is like the very pressure of the Father’s fingers working His plan within us, and upon us… And yes He is Good, all the time!

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Day 123, Consider it Rubbish

Posted in Under-the-Influence, tagged , , , , , , , on May 18, 2019| Leave a Comment »

“Yes, furthermore, I count everything as loss compared to the possession of the priceless privilege (the overwhelming preciousness, the surpassing worth, and supreme advantage) of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord and of progressively becoming more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him [of perceiving and recognizing and understanding Him more fully and clearly]. For His sake I have lost everything and consider it all to be mere rubbish (refuse, dregs), in order that I may win (gain) Christ (the Anointed One).”  Phil 3:8 Amp

In the long plan of the Lord, there is great benefit for His Body to have lost everything and consider it mere rubbish.  Only when things are considered lost can the Lord have the freedom to assert His plan and will in our lives.

When things are not yet lost to us (lost in that we have yielded, and given them over to Him), we keep them factored in, and they occupy a place of importance they should not.

Count everything as loss…

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April 2017

I had a series of four dreams back in this timeframe, and only now are they coming into a fuller understanding…

The first dream was about rubbish…and the occupation of the body.

The first dream opens with me visiting Pittsburgh, PA.  This is familiar territory as I was raised not far from here and initially went to college in Oakland.

The first part of the dream I am visiting someone who had been in ministry as a caretaker and maintenance person at a church we were previously on staff at.

The help I render to her seems insignificant.  But as she was one who held keys to the facility, I take this as confirmation that this dream was from the Lord. That its entrance is from Him.

As I approach the area when this woman is living, I notice the raised structures of all the housing.  You have to ascend ladders to gain entrance to every house.  Older or infirm people and even packages are raised up with something like dumbwaiters.  As you look down the street, on each side are rows and rows of ladders people must use, and all the lodgings are white, even luminescent…

Now I am heading back into the heart of the city to where I am lodging.  I am on foot.  Sunlight is waning and I am in a hurry to get back before dark.

I must ask directions however.  But no one is able to help.  In fact, the sense of real communication is not there.  I ask the way but no one is able to reply.  Every way I turn to find my lodging leads me further away…

As I continue my journey, I find myself in what seems like an industrial – almost mining section of the downtown city.  I have entered a place where mining for coal has previously taken place and there are deep ruts that run like giant grooves sculpting the landscape. 

Even though mining had been done, there are high rolling hills that ascend and I can see a yellow digging machine like a bobcat in the short distance.  I make my way in the direction that will take me out of here and towards the downtown (I think) but I now begin to enter an immense series of rolling and cascading hills that seem to go off in all directions, creating a landfill or refuse/industrial park that has distinct sections.

Everything around me is manmade. Everything is a by-product of man’s efforts.  Nothing here is natural or in a pristine, un-adulterated state.  This landfill is massive!

One section rolls into the next and on and on as far as the eye can see.  But the hills ascend so high that far vision is impeded.

I move into a section where some kids and adults with hard hats are occupied.  The kids are busy exploring and moving through this section, almost like it was part of an amusement park.  We are surrounded by rubbery circles, like tire inner-tubes or large washers, that cause steps to be bouncy and halting and irregular.

Everyone is highly absorbed in traversing and climbing, but they don’t seem to be actually getting anywhere.  I become aware of the danger of this section in that you could slip down in between these rubber circles that are like synthetic playground material…. If you slipped down you could be totally lost and immersed in this debris field, though I don’t witness this.

The lighting is odd.  I know evening is approaching, but there appears to be a dark ceilinged roof over us like a cave would provide.  Or the sky is already dark.  But there is a sense of something hovering close overhead. 

There is artificial lighting with some of the adults carrying lanterns or headlights.  Or else there are spotlights.

I have no sense of interaction with people other than continually asking directions which they seem unable to provide.  It seems all effort and attention is focused on navigating and exploring this section, but no one is really progressing anywhere.

Through lots of effort, I however, have moved into another section as I ascended the mound of rolling rubber debris and have come into an area of ladders.  They are fuschia-like pink against the backdrop of darkness.  Everything is synthetic here.  Like off-scourings of industrial refuse, like a landfill that goes on and on.  Its immensity is staggering.

I am working hard to ascend these ladders.  I can see people traversing as silhouettes across the top, but again I am struck by the endlessness of this pursuit.  Still, I continue to ask when possible, “Do you know how to get to the city-downtown?”  But no one appears to be able to answer.

I have moved through many varying sections, working and working relentlessly to move on.  I am driven to get out of this massive refuse area of rolling hills and synthetic remains.  Nothing here is natural.  Nothing is unadulterated.  People are captive to their sections as if nothing else matters.  Each section with a different type of debris.

Somehow, I am able to move on.  The others are content, as if they are not even aware of their captivity.

Somehow, I ascend a hill and way off in the distance I see an end to these hills.  In that distant area before me is brilliant, sunny light, long grasses blowing in the breeze, and beyond I can see a shoreline for moving water. 

Everything opens up.  I make it over the last hill… And just as I would enter the grasses ahead, I wake up.

This is a picture of the current day church – the Body of Christ.  We are gripped by our effort, activity, and production. We are even lost in it! 

And yet we are called to consider it all as rubbish – to lay it all down, in order that we may win (gain) Christ!

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Day Eighty-Seven, Believing Well – A Necessary Prelude to Receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit…

Posted in Under-the-Influence on May 29, 2015| 1 Comment »

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And Jesus, replying, said to them, Have faith in God [constantly]. Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! and does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for Him. For this reason I am telling you whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you, and you will [get it]. Mk 11:22-24 Amp

Absolutely every promise offered by the Father through the Son is inherited by faith. (Rom 4:16)  So the very first thing that you want to check when hitting a wall in receiving any promise – is your faith.  Are you standing in a place of faith?  Do you believe God can do what He says, and watches over His Word to perform it? Or are you doubting, wavering and uncertain?  This very posture will lock you out of the ability to receive….

I want to focus in specifically where people have trouble receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit…and speaking in tongues as the evidence of that receipt…

I was a problem child in this issue. Living in Utah, a military reservist and spouse, I had just recently come back to the Lord from wandering away after a childhood salvation. I pursued the Baptism of the Holy Spirit for a solid year meeting with a woman from the Assemblies of God church for mentoring on this topic.  After she set the Biblical foundation and studying with me every concept, this friend began to take me to churches and homes – anywhere, anytime there was even an inkling that the Spirit would be present and working. ( Let me just say here – the purpose of studying this topic in the Scriptures is not to master it mentally, but is instead to build up your faith muscle to apprehend and receive this, by trusting fully on the Lord.)

I hit wall after wall with no breakthrough.  But things began to soften.  I began to soften and change. I set aside any worry of Tongues (because it was a worry). Instead, I began to focus on pursuing a deeper relationship with the Lord – because ultimately that is the heart of the Baptism.

What kept me going was hunger for Him, and armed with the Scripture truth – I knew He wouldn’t fail me or refuse me. So after countless times of having hands laid on me in various settings I finally received the Baptism and spoke in tongues.  But not in the way I anticipated.

I was at home one night. The kids were in bed, my husband was away TDY.  Sitting on my bed with my Bible I came before the Lord and told Him I wanted this, whatever it was going to look like, because I wanted Him. Because I am a pretty reserved person, and highly controlled – the issue of releasing control especially of my mouth was a big hurdle for me.  But in that moment I had faith that more than enough hands had been laid on me to receive.  I was out of the public arena where performance fear continued to plague me. I had been afraid of failing the test of speaking.  However, there in that moment of quiet, safety, and peace in my room, I was able to let go of all fear, and just receive. 

The Lord met me where I was.  He actually presented what was like a teleprompter to read from in my perception.  I don’t even begin to know what it said. But after reading from it, I haltingly was speaking in tongues. Unfortunately, after that night I convinced myself that I had done it myself, that it wasn’t the Lord at all, and I didn’t speak again for another six weeks.

Pressure and restlessness began building in me. Desperately and humbly I came before the Lord and I had to repent of denying Him and doubting the previous event.  As I committed even more fully to enter into this deeper experience I began to speak fully and flow in a dialect or language I had never known—like a fountain gushing forth I might add.

Why do I share this?  Because in hindsight, I was the biggest obstacle to receiving.  Imagine giving a reluctant cat a bath.  He clings to everything to stay clear of the water.  He may want to be clean – but he doesn’t want the water. While I wanted the Lord, I was very reluctant of the process and of somehow disappointing Him.  But the only way to disappoint the Lord and the Holy Spirit in this process – is to give up!  This cat had to enter the water– before it could be immersed! I had to totally yield control, and that is not something we like to do at all. But it is necessary.

One big question that arises for people is: “What am I lacking or missing by not receiving this experience? What can I not do that you can do?” So let’s look at that:

Without the Baptism of the Holy Spirit you cannot:

– prophesy ( tell forth the divine counsels and predicting future events especially pertaining to the Kingdom) (Acts 2:16-18)

– have visions (divinely granted appearances) (Acts 9:10-12, 10:10-19)

– have power, efficiency, and might to be His witnesses (Acts 1:8, 4:29, 33, 5:28-32)

– perform signs and wonders (Acts 2:43, 3:16, 5:12, 13:8-12)

– speak in full and accurate boldness (Acts 4:13, 9:22, 10:28-29, 18:24-26)

– walk in true unity with the Spirit (Acts 2:42-44, 4:24, 32)

– have dreams (divinely inspired dreams)

– be translated (Acts 8:39-40)

Yeah … you just can’t be the world shaker the Lord has called us to be without the Baptism… yup!

It is also worthwhile to note some things about what is actually happening as you speak in other tongues…

– the people in the upper room had the Spirit alight upon them, but the power and effect diffused throughout their entire souls (Acts 2:3-4)

-1Cor 2:1-16 demonstrates that as you have the Baptism of the Holy Spirit you experience with greater understanding the wisdom of God, His purposes and His counsels

– this is not from an effort of self-reasoning or study, but it is conveyed directly by the Holy Spirit to our Spirit, then to our understanding

– when you speak in unknown tongues, the Holy Spirit is giving you utterance and it actually bypasses your mind/intellect and is expressed directly through your own mouth – this is the reason we must yield all our faculties (soul) and members (physical body) (Romans 6:13).  You are speaking out of your spirit as inspired by the Holy Spirit.  For this reason it is considered that Speaking in Other Tongues is a gateway for operation in all the Gifts of the Holy Spirit — which you cannot actually employ then without first having the Baptism – which means tongues too of course.

Now for the final clincher…

Everything hinges on believing – well. Your faith hinges on your willingness to believe – to trust God and to submit to His opinion. (Mk 11:22-24) So look at this…

In Acts 2:14-41 is the Apostle Peter’s first big show after the upper room.  As he is speaking in verse 37  people were stung to the heart with what he was saying.  This is often the way in Scripture. If you are gonna get your panties in a wad over something – you will receive nothing.  But here, they ask, “What shall we do?”  This should be your question, if you have ever felt left out in the whole Baptism of the Holy Spirit process.  Now listen to what Peter said in response to them – for this is your best and continual guidance until you receive…verse 38:

“And Peter answered them, Repent (change your views and purpose to accept the will of God in your inner selves instead of rejecting it) and be Baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of and release from your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

“Every one of you”…Did you get that?  You shall receive!!!!  There is nothing blocking you except your old perception, and your sense that you have been left out.  But you have not been left out!!! The Lord’s love and inclusion of you has not changed, nor will it. But you stand in the driver’s seat here.  Like me… do you need to repent and ask forgiveness for denying Him? I sure did. But don’t let a delay become a lifetime of disappointment and bitterness. This is yours if you want it.  Jesus wants it for you – He wants you to be His witness. So don’t let the devil steal it. Tell that old mountain to be lifted up and thrown into the sea!

The word says in Acts 2:39:

“For the promise [of the Holy Spirit] is to and for you and your children, and to and for all that are far away, [even] to and for as many as the Lord our God invites and bids to come to Himself.” Amp

He’s offered already. He has invited you to be His.  You got the promise. Open the box. It’s got your name on it… love and blessings JESUS. 

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Day Eighty-Four: What Exerts the Most Power Over You?

Posted in Devo Shorts 2011, Under-the-Influence on November 3, 2014| 1 Comment »

“Everything is permissible (allowable and lawful) for me; but not all things are helpful (good for me to do, expedient and profitable when considered with other things). Everything is lawful for me, but I will not become the slave of anything or be brought under its power.”  1Cor 6:12

What exerts the most power over you?  The answer to this question is only something you can decide – but I would recommend you not decide it alone – let the Holy Spirit guide you into all truth concerning this question.  Otherwise we have a tendency to look too kindly at our motivation and what really holds us.

There is a quote by Oswald Chambers that lays more insight into this question and its true response than perhaps we want…. But here it is: “It is not what we spend the most time on that molds us the most, but whatever exerts the most power over us.”

Think of that now –It’s not about what you spend the most time on, but what exerts the most power over you….

Many of us spend a lot of time reading the word of God, excavating Scripture for deep insight, time in prayer, serving, ministry etc.  But this quote is saying that those matter not in terms of molding us most – because it depends on what exerts the most power over us! In fact… the thing that exerts the most power over us may not even be of the Lord, but it may be of this world.  This is something to then investigate carefully!

This has driven me to inquire of the Lord… “How can I give You, Lord, the ability to exert the most influence over me?  How can You become the preeminent force of my life? How can I choose to align with giving You this kind of power Lord?”

The answer is both simple, and yet difficult: simple to understand, difficult to exercise.

To allow the Lord this kind of preeminence, this kind of power exerted, we must make a conscious effort to frame every insight, to bring every thought captive, and every response yielded to the authority and reality of redemption that is found in the Cross and the work of the Cross through Christ Jesus.  In essence, to live under the shadow of the reality of the Cross – continually allowing it to determine our position on every issue of life.

You see, as believers, we are no longer our own.  However, while that is true in premise, many believers continue to live as if they are only their own – and call it Christianity.  That kind of living does not display the demonstration or power of God in our lives, because we continue to live lives that are natural in substance – not under submission.

The greatest reality in life is what Jesus did at the Cross – it has overcome the world, even our faith!  But unless we continually yield and live under that truth, we are allowing other things to exert the most power over us…

For instance: I may be completely yielded to the Word of God and what it reveals to me – but if I haven’t made the Cross a higher order of submission, then I have made my own understanding and intellect the preeminent thing.  Thus, my soul is still basically in charge of what I do, my responses in life, and the thing that exerts the most influence over me.  Not because I spend the most time in mental pursuits, but because that is the place of my highest yielded-ness. What that means is, that while I may understand what the Word shows me – it remains just an intellectual exercise.  Until I have given Jesus and the Cross all authority to rule over me, I will continue in the mode of determining what I will and will not obey.

Once I yield myself totally to the redemptive reality, suddenly the pivot point for all my choices and all my understanding defaults to the Cross.  Every issue that arises thereafter, every concern and question, every need and experience then becomes tied to the atonement.  The baseline question for every need then becomes:  “What does this issue have to do with the atonement?”  In other words, what does the Cross and the reality that I am Christ’s now require me to do?

Without this preeminent authority being given to the reality of the redemption, I will decide things and give power to something lower than the Cross and Christ – generally my soul.

The litmus test for this reality is: What was the last time your heart was rent over a decision – because you were choosing submission to the Lord?

You see – no amount of intellect or mental insight into the instruction of the Lord would ever have brought Abraham to the place of offering his son Isaac on the altar. No intellectual understanding of the concept of forgiveness would have motivated Joseph to forgive his brothers of their betrayal and selling him into captivity. No great intellectual insight prompted Moses to choose oppression with the Hebrew slaves over the riches of Egypt.  Every one of these situations required a renting of the heart to obey and choose the way of the Lord.

It is no different for us today! Daily we are faced with choices of comfort and convenience or the leading of the Lord and obedience.  Where He is truly Lord – we will face a struggle in our own heart to obey.  There will be a renting as we choose to submit! And yet, that is the provision He has made a way for at the Cross as He gave us not only forgiveness for our sin nature, but a new nature in Himself – abiding in us!

This is the redemptive reality that should exert all power over us!  This is the life of Christ and the Kingdom ruling over us!  It is not about more time in Bible Studies or prayer, or service. It is about the recognition of His authority over us and the walking of that authority out in our lives!  This is the very reality and intention behind the Sermon on the Mount – The Beattitudes!

Yes, everything is permissible for me as a behavior and choice that is approved within me by the presence of the Holy Spirit abiding in me! The only choices that are lawful for me are ones led and in agreement with the Presence that rules in me that is the Spirit. As my choices are born our of the Spirit’s Presence dwelling in me – there can be no charge of lawlessness brought against me. (Gal 5:22-25, Col 3:15, Rom 8:4-8) This is where we should be living – daily! Otherwise I become a slave to something or someone other than the Lordship of Christ! It may be my appetites, my intellect, my emotions, or my agenda and plans – but these are simply the elements of my soulish life which are to have been laid on the Mercy Seat as an offering (like Isaac) – that righteousness from Christ and His life in me can come forward.

What exerts the most power over you?  As a Christian — it should be the life of our Savior Jesus, aligned with His Word, compelled by the Spirit in love. Is this true for you?

It is not our perception or understanding of the image of Christ’s glory that we are being continually transfigured into, but is is the reality of Christ we are moving into from one degree of glory to another – and we shall resemble Him! (2Cor 3:18, 1Jn 3:1)

Maranatha!

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