The Discipline And Benefit of Fasting

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  I have to begin without my early morning shot of caffeine because today is a day to fast.

I try to hide my head under the pillow and go back to sleep but the Holy Spirit insists that I get up: “Understand why I call you to fast.  I want you to be in control of your flesh so you can receive more of my wisdom, which is more truth”.

Jesus fasted.  As I ponder His command and model, the why of it leads me to understand how my flesh dictates can over-rule Divine input.  Flesh control leads to flesh pampering and flesh pampering leads to a carnal lifestyle. 

Paul said in I Corinthians 9:27 that he beats up his body to make it his slave.  It is interesting to note that in our days of mega information about health, we learn that fasting has a health benefit as well as a spiritual one as modelled by our Lord

Reading about the life of Jesus when He walked the earth reveals that fasting was His regular routine.  We associate fasting mostly to His word to the Disciples when they tried and failed to exorcize a demon out of a young boy. 

After He rebukes them for their unbelief and talks about the faith of a mustard seed that can move mountains, He said in Matt 17:21, “However this kind does not come out without prayer and fasting.”

A closer look for me is to see that fasting in some mysterious way, takes us into the place of Divine wisdom to understand how to co-operate with the move of God in the situations we face in our world. 

A recall of the life in the Garden before the fall reminds me that man was created to co-labor with God in the government (tending) of His created world.   For that we need a relationship with the Creator to gain His wisdom in the management of our lives. This is why we need to get past our human minds now tainted by the toxic fruit of “human” knowledge of good and evil and into the place of Divine wisdom from the One who knows all things.

The Holy Spirit continues to show me truth:

The Disciples did not know that the unbelief of the father was at least in part the cause of the demonic control of the child.  Jesus told them that this kind of demonic influence would not be obliterated without prayer and fasting on their part.  Straight up, they needed Divine wisdom to set the boy and his father free.

As I look over the principle of prayer and fasting it seems they both go together and appear in example by Godly people seeking Godly wisdom.  It requires a personal discipline by the “fast-ee” to give something up to gain something better.  That something better for me is “Divine wisdom” to process and re-act to the challenges that our Heavenly kingdom battle against evil forces presents.

There are all kinds of excuses our flesh will deliver and we will accept as reasons not to fast.  But by capitulating to our flesh, I believe we miss out on great things that might empower us in the realm of the spirit where God initiates His moves.

A fasting discipline can begin slow and low but must start with the thought of consistency and getting stronger as we see and feel the benefits in body and spirit.  And in truth, we must be prepared with patience to wait upon the Lord as we fast. Just as a body builder does not see the results of their discipline in the first hour of training, I must be diligent and not give up.

My experience is that at first my stomach growls at me and makes me miserable.  If that doesn’t work, my head starts to hurt and reminds me that the physical pain will subside if I just drink a cup of my beloved coffee or eat some sugar. 

If that doesn’t draw me out of the discipline, then the “liar” starts his round of assaults mocking my efforts as stupid or futile and pointless.  Then comes the threat and danger to my health that such risky behavior will surely bring.   Subtle whispers in my ear trying to get me to cave.

Then all that mumbo-jumbo leaves and impatience begins to set in.  I want to see an immediate result for my huge “sacrifice”, in the form of an instant Divine word or resolution to the vexing situation I am dealing with.

If the missed meal whether one or many doesn’t translate to a major change or event, the previous lies become even more believable and I am tempted to confess, “This fasting thing just doesn’t work for me”.

The question I ask myself is whether the fast has drawn me into the Lord’s presence and whether my perspective has been changed or affirmed. The real spiritual purpose I find to the discipline of regular fasting is to draw closer to the Father Heart of God, to hear His voice more clearly and to grasp His purpose more willingly.  The good will of Heaven is in our eternal best interest and not necessarily our temporal pleasure.

Fasting takes me past flesh considerations for the time to seek the Father’s will just as Jesus told us to do.  Fasting is a way we crucify our flesh and surrender it to the ruling authority of the Holy Spirit.  The benefits of fasting far outweigh the pain of missing a meal. 

I have questioned the real purpose of fasting over the years.  I have come to many thoughts and drawn many conclusions   The highway of Holiness provides many way stations of refreshment as we navigate the ups and downs of life.  Spiritual maturity is a process and not, I might add, a fast one. 

Today the Holy Spirit has opened my eyes to the fact that fasting is an act of obedience and shown me the importance and relationship fasting is to gaining His wisdom.  In this chaotic world that seems to be under a blanket of dark deception, the truth and wisdom of God is not something we dare be caught without.

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?

Counting The Cost***

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  It is His role and desire to lead me into all Truth. 

Many are the days over the course of my life when seeing the persecution of the righteous leaves me feeling defeated and whiny. 

None of us asked to be born in these days of end times yet in the Sovereignty of the Almighty here we are:  Feet planted on fallen earth “at” such a times as this.  But then, we get to choose to believe and act as if it is also “for” such a time as this, as it was for Queen Esther in the book that bears her name.  That is called purpose and I am compelled to look for mine

We are starting to see the overt persecution of Christians again after a long period of peace for the Church.   Yet whether we realize it or not the subtle persecution of our Christianity goes on in our personal lives day after day through the adverse circumstances we face from an unseen enemy that some may choose to call “fate”. 

The Holy One speaks what very few of us hear before we make the decision to follow Christ, “Remember what it is to count the cost!”

Death to our “self-life” is the cost all who follow Christ will sooner or later be required to pay.  Death and the cross of crucifixion comes to us in many different ways as we journey with Jesus.  For the martyrs who we see being tortured and beheaded, the death is a final and physical one.  

For others it may be staying in a love-less marriage, or thank-less job.  Death may come as a talented mom who decides to stay at home for her children instead of following after a promising career.  For others it may be enduring the pain of living and seeing many children starving in a foreign land while being able to help only a handful to survive.

Emotional oppression and physical infirmities can also be persecution by an unseen enemy and does in part explain why bad things can and do happen to good people.  The list of ways to die to ourselves goes on whether by choice or happenstance and each way is unique to the calling that Jesus has on our lives.

Jesus was the one who gave warning to those who would choose to follow Him. 

Luke 14:25 Jesus talked about “hating” family and even their own life, “And whosoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.  For which of you intending to build a tower does not sit down first and count the cost whether he has enough to finish it…”   

Earlier in Luke Jesus told them in Luke 12:51-53, “Do you suppose that I came to bring peace on earth?  I tell you not at all.  For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two and two against three.  Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. 

These divisions are heartbreaking and forms of death for relational beings that we are.  Jesus was not telling us to hate in the common sense of the word hate, but rather requiring his followers to prioritize their love for Him above all others.   Following Jesus will bring persecution from those we love and out of relationships we cherish.  We must be prepared to endure what that means. 

The Church has become soft and in part I believe it is due to the soft pedaling of the Gospel.  We treat salvation like a ticket to Disneyland rather than prepare the “saved” for the hardship of what will begin a life of persecution and death to our life of comfort and ease.  While Eternity is our outrageous and delightful destination, the Christian’s journey on fallen earth is anything but easy. 

It seems to me that we, the church, are a community of shell-shocked believers who were either never told about the persecution to come or were adolescent in thinking that persecution would not be part of our life experience. 

Jesus never minced words and was always brutally honest in everything He spoke of.  When He told those who would follow Him that persecution would come, it did.    But Jesus also promised that He would never leave nor forsake those who were and would become His followers.

On the flip side of counting the cost of following Jesus, I see how following a self-serving lifestyle or worst yet a seducing evil spirit also bears a cost. The consequences of sin without a Savior to mediate brings eternal as well as temporal pain.  Evil makes no promises past the immediate but short-lived pleasure and it bears noting that Satan hates and persecutes all humanity even those doing his will.  

Understanding the truth and reality of persecution underscores for me the truth and reality of the promises for those of us who believe.  If persecution is truth, then so are the promises Jesus made to His followers.

Promises follow and speak of joy and relief to come, “Beloved do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened to you, but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s suffering.  That when His glory is revealed you may also be glad with exceeding joy.”  I Peter 4:12   

The glory of the Lord can be revealed at any moment since that is what the Holy Spirit brings out of our lives as we endure and persevere through the hard times.  So our joy is not just for the sweet by and by but also the hard here and now, and can be found in the Divine intervention we will experience here on earth.   

James 1:2 also speaks of the trials of persecution, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials that the testing of your faith produce patience.  But let patience have it perfect work; that you may be perfect and complete lacking nothing.”      

Today the Holy One has dialed up and made an important point in understanding the fiery trials we face and can rightfully call persecution.  Persecution was warned as the cost of following Jesus and all should be encouraged to count the cost.  But once we are in it, we must look for and appreciate the Divine purpose for it.  And that is the perfecting of our faith.

The Holy Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?    

 

  

A Life of Miracles***

The Holy One calls to me this morning. I so enjoy the great liberty and freedom the Lord provides as we seek Him and learn more about His mysterious ways.  

Some of the most amazing Truths have been discovered as we play a mind game I call “What-if”.  The Holy Spirit seems to draw me into our game this morning.

“What if……Divine intervention is My desire not just the desperate need of your heart”. 

Miracles are the evidence of Divine intervention and an over ruling of the “natural” circumstances that we are programmed to expect.  Miracles demonstrate a power over what we deem as impossible situations or events.  Somewhere along the line between truth and error, I picked up the thought that true faith doesn’t call out for miracles and that God is reluctant to show His Hand. 

When Jesus walked the earth His life demonstrated a multitude of miracles and He said that “even if you do not believe in my words at least believe on the evidence of the miracles (works) themselves”.  Miraculous works were the evidence that He is God and that when He speaks of His Father in Heaven and the love of our Creator His words are true. 

When I consider the origins of man and the creation of the first pair, I am drawn to the Divine benediction over them and as the first humans, it is the Godly benediction over all of us.  Our lives are to be spent tending and co-laboring in a sense with God in His created world.

But as I look around I see contradictory evidence in that darkness and doom cover the land. So I come to ask Him:  Lord, what is the problem here that evil seems to be on the increase in our lives?  And where is the promised dominion for your people?

His answer comes from out of His word, “My people are dying from lack of knowledge and they do not receive because they do not ask”.   

Back in the garden before humanity increased, man was set to “tend” God’s created world.  One definition of to “tend” is to discover the mysteries contained therein.  That opens up a whole archeological adventure for my mind.  But the word “tend” in a common definition is to take care of, and in that sense, people in God’s created universe require the most tender care. 

By the details of His earthy life, it is clear that Jesus came to care for humanity.  He spent all His time and energy dealing with human need.  He did not look for the animals to make their lives better nor did He cause stone statues to bleed or weep to demonstrate His God-power.  His miracles directly impacted human lives and as He told us from early on; He came to set the captives free.

This is not to say we should abuse or refuse to tend to the animal kingdom for that is also part of our dominion and responsibility but His model of miracles was to relieve human suffering as the evidence of the love of God, a Heavenly Father over His beloved children.

Miracles mark God’s Divine intervention and are needed when we are at risk.  I am captivated by Jesus explanation to His disciples as to why the man was born blind who Jesus was preparing to heal.  They had been accustomed to being legalistic (as some of us are) in the interpretation of infirmities and or birth defects.  They assumed his condition was a result of sin whether his or his parents.  Jesus set a new standard of interpretation before them, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned but that the works (miracle) of God might be revealed in him”.  John 9:3 NKJV

This was a graphic situation that baselined the lessons for their day: that He is God, that the situations in life are to be seen as opportunities for His glorious intervention and very importantly that He is the light of the world and removes our blindness to Truth.

We who know Him are the only ones who can petition for the miracles from Heaven and expect answers.  For no one comes to the father except through Jesus and only in His name will the Father give what is petitioned.   The only prayer of a non-believer that will have an answer is the prayer for salvation and that is instantly accepted and stamped approved. 

This leaves the burden and responsibility and privilege to ask for Divine intervention on the shoulders of the “saved”.  Miracles are a true co-laboring with our God and exercise of our delegated dominion here on earth.  As we live out our lives, we see suffering humanity and yet do we just wring our hands in resignation of the evil that suffering represents?  Or are we willing to give the time and effort in folding our hands in intercession that God should move and be glorified as He does? 

Conviction today is a sword to my heart.  Self-centeredness in spiritual laziness is choking when I realize my prayerlessness constrains God’s love and desire to be seen for who He is to the unsaved world around me.  Miracles are the evidence of Who He is not just the human need fulfilled. 

Just to be clear, a miracle to me is the supernatural fact that as I pray God hears and answers.  Our intimate relationship with the God of all creation is a miracle in and of itself.  The realization that the Holy Spirit indwells us is a miracle.  The control that the Sovereign has over all of life is a miracle and is seen as He orchestrates things in life that lead all of us to Him.

From my counselling session today, I pray I may be more open to all that the Lord desires to do in intervention and not wait to petition until my heart is in human distress.  God desires to give us life and life to the full.  Miracles are all a part of the fullness of life. 

I realize that hard times and impossible circumstances make us acutely aware of our need for His hand of intervention but resolution of those things are not the only miracles He desires to work through my life.

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?        

Remembering Momma***

The Holy One calls to me this morning. Living with an aging parent marks the beginning of many “endings” for things we often take for granted.

When a cherished parent takes a turn from independence to complete dependency, it marks the end of a familiar and life-long structured relationship. The switching of roles is hard if not heart-breaking, yet it is the cycle of life that many will face with the passing of time.

The Holy Spirit has laced His counsel today with a powerful truth: “Don’t focus on where she is today. Look ahead to where she is going and what her glorified state will be for all eternity.”

My mom has reached the ripe old age of 93 and is in the sunset of her long and productive faith-filled life. She weathered many hard circumstances growing up in the depression. She was widowed during WW II and was left with a baby boy who would never see his father and then had to bury that same son after a sudden and unexpected death before his “time” in human terms.

She lost her 2nd beloved husband to the treachery of Parkinson’s disease and then after he left her side, she spent many subsequent years living independently alone but always in support of those she loves.

I was raised in the church and faith and my mom has always been a rock of emotional stability in my life when heartaches touched our family. As I went through some hard trials after leaving home and over the course of my own life, I always drew from her example and strength to press on and, in faith, to look for and always hope for better days.

To see the one who was always so “in control” of herself; the one who was a living example of grace under fire, slip into such dependency is among the most difficult things in life that I have had to process.

Relational losses happen in life. Divorce is hard but life goes on and there is a hope for what may be another relationship better than the one lost. Death is a final and difficult good-bye from here, but one where both the body and the soul are gone at the same time. Healing comes slowly as we live on and recall sweet memories and wonderful times with others who knew them too. But for me, watching the breakdown of the mind while the body is strong requires a better perspective than I can muster on my own.

There is a helplessness that overwhelms a sudden onset of geriatric confusion and as a child of a victim, I confess that the helplessness takes its toll. As with all the circumstances in my life, the Holy Spirit leads me into all truth and He takes me to His word to paint a picture of His message.

Each of the gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John tell of His resurrected life. Each speaks of the way that Jesus appeared to those who knew Him:

Matt 28:9-10, “And as they went to tell His disciples behold Jesus met them saying “Rejoice” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshipped Him.”

Mark 16:14, “Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.” (not the first time they had been rebuked by Him…LOL)

Luke 24: 31 and 36 “Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him: and He vanished from their sight.” “Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them”

Luke 24:39-40 “Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle and see, for spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have. When He had said this He showed them His hands and His feet.

John 20 has various verses of His interaction with the disciples who knew Him:

John 20:16-18, “Jesus said to her, “Mary”, She turned and said to Him “Rabboni (which is to say, Teacher”). Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me for I have not yet ascended to the Father, but go to my Brethren and say to them that I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God”. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had spoken these things to her".

John 20:27-28, “Then He said to Thomas, reach your fingers here and look at my hands; and reach your hand here and put it in my side. Do not be unbelieving but believing. And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God”.

John 21:12, “Jesus said to them, “Come and eat breakfast” yet none of them dared ask Him “who are you” ----knowing that it was the Lord.”

The wonderful picture for me today is not just the reminder of our resurrection life to come that Jesus modelled after His death, nor the make-up of His glorified body like the one we will someday have, but the picture for me today is that He was recognized as the Jesus that each one knew. The resurrected Jesus was the same “persona” as the Jesus they knew and loved in the flesh.

No wonder the Holy One is encouraging me to look past the fleshly withering because the flesh “withering” does not impact the soul. The body is destined to decay while our soul/personality is eternal, and designed to live forever. Momma is the same soul/personality as she has always been in the glory days of her fleshly control with a sound mind and she is the same soul/personality today as she will be when she inhabits her glorified resurrected body in the age to come.

With that as encouragement I can see to taking care of her earthly tent as it is folding and speaking over her the truth of her coming restoration. She is and always will be the Momma I have known and loved. It will be amazing to see her once again in her prime and with all the vitality of eternal vigor.

For the moment she is locked in a flesh and disintegrating earthly tent but there is a day coming when she will be set free from her earthly shackles and be forever young because of what Jesus has done for all of us.

Remembering Momma as she once was, helps me to look forward to who she will become again.

It must be stated that eternal resurrection of a glorified body is only promised and true for those who have come into a relationship with Jesus as their acknowledged Savior and Lord. Only those who believe that Jesus is the Savior Son of God and accept Him as their personal Savior and Lord for having died in their place are eligible for eternal life in a resurrected body. Jesus knows the heart of all of us and He will move heaven and earth to make each of us His own.

As I think about the natural process of aging and make my peace with the decline, I am also encouraged to think about the those who are physically and mentally “handicapped”. These are whole souls living in a broken body. They will be set free one day as well and all those believers in Jesus who have been their parent or care-givers will have the incredible joy of meeting that special unique person trapped inside the temporal broken body.

The long journey home, may take us through some dark valleys and difficult days but when we see our loved ones and their hard circumstances in the light of eternity, I admit, I cannot wait to get home.

The Spirit is calling. Can you hear Him?

Divine Purpose In Human Weakness***

The Holy One calls to me this morning. I have taken some hits lately from the unseen enemy in the Kingdom battle that rages.  It leads me to question where is my shield?

I have learned over the years that perspective is key to processing events that befall me and those I love.  When things make no sense from my point of view, I know I need to stop and say to myself, “It’s time to get God’s perspective on this problem”.

Self-pity taunts me and challenges me to look at the “damage” to my tidy little life that I have to confess is outside of my control. The Holy One speaks to the question that is like a dead weight and has stopped my forward motion:

“When evil assaults and inflicts pain, it’s not any failure of your shield, but I want you to see that I will heal the damage if I do not protect you from the arrow.”

I am confident that each and every one of us is born under a Divine benediction and with a purpose ordained by our Creator.  It is the Father’s will that we find and flourish in that purpose so that He will be glorified not only to those of us on earth but also to all the unseen witnesses in the Heavenly realm.  

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a loud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily entangles us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross, despising its shame and has sat down at the right hand of the Throne of God”.

This is my answer and whether I am protected from the assault or healed through it, the bottom line is that I am OK and God is always in control of my life even as I am not. 

Sometimes I forget that while I am being asked to trust God, He has the greater challenge in that He placed His trust in me to be His faithful witness and in that way justify His great wisdom in the creation of mortal men with an eternal soul who seem to constantly fail Him. 

Here is where I see that even in my abysmal weakness there is Divine purpose.  Once we get saved and our eternal destination is determined, the process of sanctification begins.  That is a word that explains all the challenges we face as Godly people in an ungodly world. 

We are being transformed from fleshly carnality to an acceptable state of Holy made possible only by the indwelling Spirit of Christ Jesus Himself AKA The Holy Spirit. 

If I lose sight of the bigger picture and greater goal, I might falter in the race set before me.  This is why we are called to persevere.  We are not fit in our flesh to rule and reign with Christ in the eternal Kingdom to come.  We learn to rule as we submit to the Throne of the rule maker and His Indwelling Holy Spirit.

“Let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily entangles us.”  For me that sin and weight is the self- pity the enemy has thrown up in my face and tried to use to weigh me down.  Evil will throw all kinds of garbage at me from the sidelines just to trip me up.  The way to get past his taunting is to listen to the Holy Spirit and focus on Jesus who endured more pain than I ever will and is cheering me on from His Heavenly Throne.

One day all who call Him “Lord” will reach the end of the race and celebrate together with Him the victories we found and that He provided all along the way.

Until then we are to press on and do all we can to bring Glory to our Father who is in Heaven by fulfilling His purpose for us on earth.  I am thankful for His wise counsel. 

Today, I can be sure that He has Divine purpose in my human weakness and I will keep going as He works it out.   

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?

The Consequence Of Unforgiveness***

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  Most of His lessons come out of my personal situations and the wrestles of trying to navigate my way through a fallen world.  But while all lessons are applicable, some are taught and brought through observation of other caught in deep waters.

Today as I ponder things that are brought about by pure evil, I see how the worst suffering may result from wrong handling of the emotions that come with and are basically due to the attacks. 

The Holy Spirit gently leads me to a very important truth.  “Humanity’s deepest pain is not generally from without but rather the consequence of bitterness from within.  Bring all your bitterness to Me”.

People do evil thing to us and to those we love. Time goes on and evil people pass away or move on and out of our lives.  Relational pain is something we suffer long after the attack is over.  Unforgiveness that brings bitterness is a continuous emotionally lethal consequence that we must learn to deal with.

Jesus spoke of it in Matt 18 in His parable of the unforgiving servant.  Jesus told Peter that the Kingdom of Heaven is “like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with His servants”.  As he began to settle these accounts, one servant owed a great deal he could not pay.  His Master ordered the sale of his wife, his children and all he owned in order to cure the debt. 

The man pleaded for mercy and just more time to pay, but the Master moved by compassion forgave the debt and even wiped his slate clean.  That same servant went out and found a fellow servant who owed him a debt far less than the debt he had just been relieved from repaying. This “wicked” servant with no compassion, threw his debtor into prison until he could pay.

The Master heard of the situation and recalled the wicked servant to stand before him as he reinstated the debt.  He said, “You wicked servant.  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant just as I have had compassion on you?”  The parable ends as the wicked servant is delivered to the “torturers” (a prison of torment) until he should pay off all his debt.

While the main point of the parable has to do with the principle of our debt forgiven by God when we ask for forgiveness and mercy and with the expectation that we should in turn extend the same mercy to others since we all have debts to be paid.  But today the Holy One takes me to the consequence of the wicked servant’s unforgiveness; He was delivered to the “torturers”.

The principle of forgiveness is the bedrock of our Christianity.  God forgave us at the cost of the excruciating suffering and physical death of His Son, Jesus.   If forgiveness is the bedrock of our faith, then unforgiveness is the sinking sand.

The consequences for unforgiveness according to the word of God is torment, a mental torture, a penalty with life altering ramifications depending on how long we choose to remain in that place.  Mental torment is the worst since it clouds our thinking and robs us of peace, and joy and all the other good feelings that make life on earth pleasant and even easier.

Unforgiveness is a prison where we are locked with the offense and the one who delivered the blow.  Forgiveness provides for our release from that heart-rending prison and freedom from the offender and the dark demons we find there.

Forgiveness benefits the offended even more than the offender unless there is true repentance for the assault on another and reconciliation is made possible.  Absent that, forgiveness is deeply personal and really affects our own heart and mind and our relationship with the One who gives the command to forgive.

On that note it is worth mentioning that sometimes the bitterness and unforgiveness we are most tormented by is directed at ourselves.  Self-forgiveness is just as important as forgiving others and self-bitterness is as toxic as bitterness toward others.

The size of the debt owed us is not the issue and has no bearing on the forgiveness we need to extend.  All offenses we suffer must be forgiven and then released for God to enact His judgement, or vengeance or what amounts to consequences for violations committed against us and ultimately Him

Apart from Christ, forgiveness in many cases is not possible in and of ourselves. The lighter offenses we may get away with ignoring or sweeping under the rug of our prideful self-exalted generosity.  But sooner or later evil, using people in our lives, will deliver to us a blow that cannot be forgiven by our flesh-defending self.

This is the lesson that comes out of our counseling session this morning.  I understand how unforgiveness leads to bitterness that is a mental prison worse than a physical one.  But in His Holy drawing, the Lord reminds me that just like all the other godly works in my life, apart from Him I can do nothing.  I must bring all that is not forgiven and causing a root of bitterness in my soul to Him to fix.  I repent for the bitterness that my unforgiveness has brought and ask Him for His help in the cure.

With the Holy One I find that it is possible to move from the prison to the Holy Place in a short matter of time and even experience having the consequences of unforgiveness removed.   We in essence hold the key to our own cell but the question is: “Will we use it”? 

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?               

Divine Potential In Our Everyday World***

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  Out of the early morning darkness comes His light.

“Miracles are just a little picture of Heaven’s good-will on earth.  Open your eyes to all the Divine potential around you”.

I understand from past lessons taught by the Holy Spirit that the spoken word has great power over the things in this earthly life.  He has taken me over and over to the words of the Lord Jesus in John 14:12:  “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”

When Jesus, the Son of God invaded the earth that He created, lives were changed in dramatic ways.  People saw the impossible things worked into a grand and glorious picture of help that truly reflects the loving Father Heart of God. 

What parent does not want the absolute best for their child?  Jesus who was God in the flesh came to show us a better life potential here and an even better one once we leave the shackles of our earth-bound existence.

To gain it all requires faith, a belief that Jesus is who He said He is and to embrace the truth of His message.  Supernatural signs and wonders were the proof He brought to identify Himself as God’s one and only Son.

John 14:11, “Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake."

John 14:13 “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son”.

John 2:23, “Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.”

It is quite apparent that the miracles were not just to relieve the suffering of the people in that day.  And while Jesus healed everyone who crossed His path, His path did not cross all who were infirmed.  He delegated His authority to His followers and we are counted among those to whom He delegated the power to change circumstances as people come to cross our path. 

Today is yet another reminder to look at the Divine potential for miracles in what I see in the world that touches my life.  It is also important to understand the Lord’s life and what message the miracles were intended to convey.

Looking back and in regard to the working of miracles in our day, the purpose for them has not changed.  Each is designed to draw us to believe in the One  True God and bring Him glory and also to believe in the One He sent. Jesus came to show us the way "home" and back into a personal relationship with the One who created us.  

Consider the “works” that Jesus did were otherwise defined as a sign, mark, or token; 

Miracles and wonders by which God authenticates the men sent by him, or by which men prove that the cause they are pleading is God's.

A sign, prodigy, portent, i.e. an unusual occurrence, transcending the common course of nature.

God delivers supernatural interventions to give proof of His Presence and the affirmation that the one petitioning is sent by Him and for His cause.

Miracles glorify the Presence of God the Father in our lives and are the proof that Jesus is Who He said He is.  We are to petition for and participate in bringing down miraculous intervention so God, the Father, may be glorified and that Jesus Christ of Nazareth may be honored as the Savior Son sent by God. 

The Gospel is the good news that God has reached out to His Creation and made a peace offering for man to be restored in a personal relationship with Him.  Miracles of Divine intervention authenticate that we are sent and that our message is truth.  Prayer is the method of delivery that God has chosen to bring His Will to earth.  All answers to prayer are indeed miraculous.    

But for every promise there is a warning and Jesus spoke a warning for those of us living in end times regarding signs and wonders.   In Matt 24:24 Jesus said, “For false Christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  See, I have told you beforehand.”

A false Christ will not have the proper credentials of the True Christ.  A false prophet will not have the proper credentials of a true prophet of God.  It is up to us to check for proper credentials before we believe even the signs and wonders we may “see”.

As a prayer “activist” I realize that while words carry power, a Divine word is unstoppable to bring God’s Will to the situations we encounter on earth.  The difference between the two is origin.  By the indwelling Holy Spirit, we are designated ambassadors of Heaven’s King Jesus and we have been given the authority to do mighty works in His Name.  By the indwelling Holy Spirit, we know truth and under His ruling authority we are enabled and actually called to speak it. 

I understand what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell me.  Divine potential abounds with every situation that touches our lives because God has His purpose associated therein.  Nothing is random in God’s economy.  All things are designed to teach us that our “best” comes from the Creator and there is more to life than what we see at first glance.

As I look at the life of our Lord and the miracles that flowed through Him, I realize that compassion seemed to be the motivation for those super-natural events we call “miracles”.

Jesus saw humanity through loving compassionate eyes and was moved to take action.  He saw people as “sheep without a shepherd” and sheep in the Mediterranean sense were completely helpless and vulnerable without a shepherd.  Jesus heart was moved by the heart breaking condition brought by sin and what humanity was facing in a fallen earth.

Miracles were the visible evidence of our invisible God and Jesus told us first to believe on the “evidence” of the miracles even if people were disinclined to believe in His words.  Then we are to go on to do what He did and even greater things in order to bring Glory and honor to our Father God.

I need to ask myself:  Am I ASKING for Divine intervention into the world of hurt around me?  And if so, am I asking according to that same ultimate purpose; that God the Father be glorified and the people affected be brought to believe in our message of His love? 

“Ask and you will receive; You do not receive because you do not ask and when you do, you ask amiss that you may spend it on your pleasures.”  James 4:3

Here I find the all-important motive check that can be my undoing:  Is my motivation a self-exalting pride that I be seen as one who can move the hand of God or worse, take claim as one who has the power in and of myself to work the miracle?  Or is my motivation as that of a humble child who is excited to say “That’s from my Father” and encourage all to praise His Holy Name?

Divine intervention was surely needed and miracles flowed out from the compassion of the Creator for His created.  I believe the purpose for super-natural intervention is to let us, in the natural world, look past the temporal to find our eternal and super-natural Heavenly Father; the fact of His being and the evidence of His love.  

When Jesus waked among His created, He was the conduit between Heaven and earth who brought the true representation of God’s love to this world.  

The Holy Spirit has taught and brought many things to my mind this morning:

Human need brings up Divine Potential and prayer invites God's Hand to move. 

Compassion for those suffering opens the door for miracles.

Beware of those with false credentials.

Check my personal motives against God’s Word and His Will.

I am on a learning curve and so thankful that my indwelling Counselor is on board to lead me into all truth.  Now I can look around for all the Divine potential and work with my Lord to bring Heaven’s good-will to earth.

The Spirit is Calling.  Can you hear Him? 

 

  

Divine Boundaries***

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  His Presence is always felt at the start of my conscious day.   I "feel" His presence as a warm protection.  His gentle voice speaks of that in an uncommon way, "My will has boundaries and you must observe them".

My thoughts take me back to lessons in the "Christian" history of our great nation.  For those who may not be aware, there are two histories to our nation.  There is our secular history and our Christian history.  The stories in our pubic school textbooks only focus on our secular history and deny our young citizens the other accounts that emphasize our Christian history and reveal the fingerprints of God that have been evident from our very foundation.

Our geographical boundaries have been set by the One who called this nation into existence.  We sing about our nation as being the land from sea to shining sea.  But the north and south boundaries are land masses and conquest was a matter of battles and ground wars.  Powerful and anointed generals fought battles for the turf we now call America.  I accept that as one nation under God, He set the geographical boundaries as well as the laws governing our society that we know as the Constitution of the United States of America.

It seems that the boundaries of our nation were set by the Hand of God and not one inch of ground beyond those boundaries could be taken or given away even by a great military campaign.  Many lost their lives or reputation trying to go beyond or surrender the land that God established as our boundaries.  Benedict Arnold's name comes to mind.

This speaks to me about the Spiritual boundaries of ministry and God's will.  Did it ever occur to me that I am battling beyond the boundaries of God's will?  If I am being defeated, is there a boundary that has been breached and rather than assuming the loss is due to an enemy that must be bound up or cast down do I need to bring the situation to my Holy Counselor for Truth?

Did it ever occur to me that  have been baited to step onto a battlefield that the enemy controls and in so doing I have, in pride or flesh vulnerability, left the protected place within God's will and suffered an unnecessary defeat?

The Holy One takes me back to the days that Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted by the devil.  Each one of the temptations recorded was a challenge to the Divine purpose and will of God. 

Jesus was sent to die for the "sin" of Adam.  He was sent to put humanity back on course and in restored relationship with the Creator.  In each of the temptations, Jesus was asked to go beyond the boundary of God's Sovereign will for Him at that time. 

Jesus did not debate with the devil, even as the Savior Son of God.  The plan required His complete submission to the Father's will since Adam's rebellion of God's will caused the fall of man back in the Garden of human origins.

In Luke 4:3, the devil began his temptations with "If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread". But Jesus answered him saying, "It is written that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word of God". 

Jesus could have turned all the stones into bread yet God's will would not have been accomplished because flesh need would have pre-empted and dictated a flesh remedy.  Boom!  A Divine boundary.

In Luke 4:6 "And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give you and their glory for this has been delivered to me and I give I to whoever I wish, therefore if you worship me, all will be yours and Jesus answered and said Get behind me Satan, for it is written, "You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve".

Jesus is God and as part of the Triune Godhead, He created the world and technically it already belonged to Him.  So why not exercise His Divine ownership?  Boom!  A Divine boundary.

In Luke 4:9 the exchange continues, "If you are the Son of God throw yourself down from here for it is written, "He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you  and in their hands they shall bear you up lest you dash your foot against a stone".  And Jesus answered and said, "You shall not tempt the Lord your God" 

At this point we might wonder why Jesus didn't identify Himself and tell the pip-squeak "game over!" Why not enlist the 2/3 of the loyal Heavenly Host (who were BTW of the same origins as the devil himself) to do away with the illegitimate usurper of man's dominion of the earth?  Boom! A Divine boundary.

I get the picture.  If Jesus, who was God in the flesh resisted the temptation to go beyond the boundaries set by the Father's will and plan, then it is critical for me to observe them as well. 

God's boundaries serve God's purpose and in God's timing we will understand the wisdom they represent.  The ultimate purpose in Jesus life was to redeem and restore humanity to the relationship man had with the Creator before the rebellion that caused the fall. 

Until Jesus was crucified on the Cross, humanity was in bondage to the Devil.  The original Adam lost relationship with the Creator and set all humanity on a death course.  Adam rebelled and went beyond the boundary set by God for his well-being and experienced the heartrending separation from the loving Creator of his soul.

Jesus, the God Son, came to restore the relationship the original Adam sacrificed.  To do that, Holiness required the death producing shedding of the life blood of "man".  But in the mystery of our creation and fall, it is ordained that only Holy innocent blood can resurrect.  The sacrificial substitute for humanity had to have Holy blood not tainted by sin passed down from original Adam. 

For us to resurrect in a glorified eternal way, Holy Blood must be transferred to us and as we accept the sacrificial death of Jesus in substitution of our own we have that Holy Blood transferred to our chart of accounts.

Jesus came and brought with Him with the understanding of Holiness.  None understood it at the time even though it was written and recorded in the Old Testament.  And I wonder how many of us today have still missed the Truth:

Only Holy eternal innocent blood can resurrect in glory.  Only as we take claim to that Holy eternal blood shed in our behalf can we be resurrected in glory.  The soul lives on but the flesh body does not.  The "resurrection" has to do with a glorified body with the eternal quality that will house our eternal soul, as was modeled in the resurrected glorified body of Jesus. 

The boundaries that Heaven set applied to the One sent from there. Divine privilege would have removed all boundaries but unless Jesus lived and died a flesh death within them, none of humanity would have been saved to experience eternal life.  Jesus observed God ordained boundaries for the greater purpose:  the redemption of mankind. 

The point to me today is that if Jesus observed the boundaries of Holiness, then so must I.  If Jesus modeled  the humility of obedience to the Father and the Holy Spirit then so must I.

Understanding the "why" of boundaries is not the issue, obedience to stay within them is.   To know the boundaries requires wisdom that comes from the Holy Spirit within.  After His baptism and before Jesus went into the wilderness to face off with the devil, the Word says, "Then Jesus being filled with the Holy Spirit returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness being tempted by the devil". 

The Holy Spirit who indwells all believers is the same Holy Spirit who filled Jesus.  And it is by Him, our indwelling Counselor that we can know and honor the boundaries of our Heavenly Father's will.  Boundaries set by our Father in Heaven are for our protection and our good. 

I am thankful for the Truth about God ordained boundaries.  Today's lesson from the Holy One brings even more understanding of the need to live within them.   

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?    

            

       

Beyond Redemption

The Holy One calls to me this morning.  The warmer air circulating around me brings hope for an early spring.  I love the springtime and the symbolic “new life” it promises to bring. 

In spring, the buried life of the seeds in the earth emerge to show off the glorious beauty of a cycle that has been established by our Creator and operational since the very beginning.  It is noteworthy to me that not even a worldwide flood interrupted the cycle of nature, as the earth was purged of most living things. 

I hear the voice of my Counselor urging me to get up, “You have been redeemed, now move on in your mission”.

The Holy One knows how I can get stalled along the journey and His words are an encouragement to press on.  If I am truthful with Him and myself, I have to confess (agree with Him) that self-focus is like a flat tire and it needs to be fixed so I can get back on the road and the mission.

The Holy Spirit speaks to each one of us in uniquely personal ways.  His way of speaking to me lines up with my personality, and our relationship flows in that comfortable security.  He prods me with mental pictures and even sarcastic humor.  It is His knowledge of me that makes it all acceptably “Holy” even if no one else understands. 

This morning I know what the Holy One is pointing out to me:  Redemption is the top priority for the human soul.  Once we come to know and accept our redemption (bought with a price and released from sin) through the only Redeemer who is Jesus Christ then we need to move on and go beyond our own glorious redemption to help other souls find theirs.

His reminder takes me back to John 15:16-17, “You did not choose Me but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give you.  These things I command you that you love one another.”

This fits right in with understanding our mission beyond redemption.  We have been chosen and appointed by the Lord Himself.  Our Salvation is not random because God is not content that any should perish.  It is according to His perfect will that all humanity come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ His Son, our Redeemer. 
  

That all will choose Him is not guaranteed BUT that all will have the opportunity to choose Him is guaranteed.  The Gospel is shared one on one and each person is responsible for making the decision as to whether or not they will accept the message and the gift God is offering AKA eternal life with Him.  The sharing of that amazing Truth falls to us, His disciples. 


Love is the Lord’s command.  Love motivates us.  Every miracle and even strength to endure the brutality of Cross can be found to have originated in His love for us.  We are asked to take that same love and share the wonderful news that God’s gift of eternal life is available to everyone. 


Our mission is to bear fruit.  We cannot bear fruit in and of ourselves. For that we need the “supernatural” Presence of the Holy Spirit and to have a heart of willingness to be in submission to His lead. 
 

The mission can be stalled and even rendered incomplete if we lose our outward vision to an inward self-focus.  The danger of that is real considering we have an unseen enemy in the midst of every situation pointing out all the personal hurts and pains and even temporal death that go with life here on earth.

Contentment with our Redemption is the flip side of the attack.  If we are obsessed by our own pains or fears and immobilized on the mission or apathetic to the lost state of the world around us, so content with our own salvation as being all that counts, and therefore unwilling to share the Good News with others,  both serve the same evil end.   

The Lord’s Divine antidote to the poisonous thoughts administered by the enemy of our soul is the Truth of Eternity and keeping that as our focus makes for victory in the mission.   This world is not our home.  We are just passing through.  Where we are heading illuminates the pathway to get there. 


Flat tires for me come in the form of self-focus on my placement and circumstances that are not my first choice for life or ministry.  Be still and stand down is not the command a warrior type (or a spoiled child) likes to hear.   We cannot know the mysteries of Sovereignty but I see how to slow down in His will is different than experiencing a flat outside of it.  


A slowdown is not a “death” even if it feels like it is.   There is eternal purpose that is often beyond our view in this life.  What we are given as lessons in today may be what we need to impact someone else’s tomorrow. 

His directive today has enabled me, with His help, to fix the flat and get back on the road….I know I am alive and OK both now and for eternity.  The mission is to get beyond my own redemption and make sure I offer God’s plan to others in whatever way I have been gifted to bring it and wherever I have been placed to do so.

My personal redemption is just that:  personal.   But if I love the One who redeemed me, I will make it my ambition to go beyond my own possession of His personal gift to me and offer it to others with every opportunity I am given.   

The mission beyond redemption is to share that redemption with others. 
    

The Spirit is calling.  Can you hear Him?