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Rising Out of the Ashes

Rising Out of the Ashes

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How deep is the Creator’s love? This is what I’m learning ….

Divine love reaches deep into creation. It travels to the smallest formation of matter that is first shaped by energy, because love is energy. This is how deep the love of divinity goes, there is no aspect of creation that can’t be and isn’t touched by it. It underscores the very foundations of creation.

What creates particle formations is energy. In the context of the energy of fear and the energy of divine love, this dynamic makes for an eye-opening awareness that alters how we perceive everything, for everything comes down to the interaction of particles and the energy that governs them.

Fear is energy. When fear is great, we experience its nervous energy. Love is energy. When love is great, we experience its vivacious energy. But even though we may not be consciously aware of the lower vibration energies governing our soul day to day, they are fundamentally coming out of fear (lack of love) or love. So, what form of energy is our soul connected to that is shaping our reality, from the smallest to the largest aspects of our lives?

Fear in our reality is like dust. It’s small, consuming, sometimes hard to detect, hiding in dark places, and showing up in unexpected places. It lingers in our thoughts. It shows up in our responses. It wakes us up at night. The combination of fear energy and soul particles create a virus-like nature in our soul; one inducing harm in a myriad of ways. However, when the energy of divine love connects to our soul it constructs a harmonious vitality.

Fear finds its genesis by falling into the crevices of our mind, buried, lingering, and accumulating in our thoughts and pouring into our actions, choices, and responses. Fear interacts and affects what we see based on our personal perception, for fear is in the eyes of the beholder. When we start to move out fear by faith in divine love, we see how truly pervasive it was in our perceptions, thus our lives.

If fear remains unchecked it simmers and causes all kinds of problems and often snowballs, for fear attracts fear, the law of attraction. One act of fear leads to a poor decision that creates more fear, and so on. Fear is often a deeply integral part of the fabric of our perceptions, thus reality, because of how it connects and shapes our deepest thoughts. Thus, it frequently goes undetected in our conscious awareness. However as we grow in our soul perceptions, we see it more clearly for what it is. But, most of us have become accustomed to its presence so it goes unnoticed, though it drives and determines many actions, which makes it all the more powerful.

Fear clouds our wisdom. Fear in our thoughts removes our ability to see clearly, like a dusty windshield. The more fear, the less visibility. When we don’t perceive our surroundings accurately, it creates a lack of wisdom. There is an inversely proportionate relationship between fear and wisdom. The more fear, the less wisdom. Driving with a dirty windshield isn’t wise, neither is acting in fear, it clouds our discernment, decision making … everything. It greatly dampens our passion, drive, courage, faith, and all that give us vital energy to our lives.

Further, wisdom deceases when we experience fear because it causes a “flight” or “fight” response. We withdraw (flight) in self-pity, stay in our comfort-zone, which is the no-grow zone, physically retreat, emotionally suppress, or socially withdrawal, etc. or we are aggressive (fight) by attacking, controlling, forcing, pushing, or anger, etc. Both responses cause harm to others and us.

We currently abide in a society that perpetuates and feeds on fear, because of the lack of awareness of its counter part – divine love. In this absence, fear is one of the strongest controlling agents in us, in our society, and in our world. This is why it is often used often to control, why it is effective, and why it is prevalent.

BUT fear isn’t real. It’s born out of lies.

Unlike divine love, fear isn’t real, but is born out of mankind’s will when he acts contrary to divine love, which is always done when a lie is received as truth or good. Thus outside its source, the mind of man, it has no power or reality. In the divine (absolute) truth, there is no fear, because it isn’t of the Creator’s making. It’s only the perception of mankind (place of relative truth) who perceive in lack; lack creates fear.

When we think in fear, then act in fear, we’ve made what was unreal real to ourselves, and often that spreads to others because of the fear they already hold. It starts with acting on lies, believing they are truth, and that makes them real in our reality. Acting on the unreal as real creates a chaotic spiral of creating more fear through faulty assumptions, self-fulfilling prophesy, defense mechanisms, and ill judgments. The combination of fear energy and matter creates a great weakness in us that causes a ripple effect of problems in and outside of us. Without divine love, fear has freedom to swiftly and dominantly expand. With divine love, love enters our weakness and starts driving out the debilitating fears.

Divine love is like a consuming fire. It’s the highest form of energy thus has dominance over all other forms, especially fear that is born out of the unreal. As we move into divine love, the dust of fear starts to burn away, for in divine truth, which comes with divine love, the lies are snuffed out and turned to ashes. As divine love moves in, we begin to rise out of the ashes of the dissolving fears until they are no more. In the light of divine truth, we see fear for what it is, then divine love starts directing us.

Here is a great beauty. Look under the smallest particle, and you will see the love of the Creator waiting to be activated by the human will. This love of divinity is what is truly real because it is eternal as it comes from the Creator, verses fear which is bound to the consciousness of mankind sown in lies. His divine love underscores all of creation down to the smallest particles, for all is of His creation. Divine love becomes real to the soul when it is known, believed, and acted upon.

Fear doesn’t exist in perfect divine love. It’s impossible because perfect love cares perfectly for all creation in every area. But this love has to be desired, chosen and embraced by the soul of mankind. It has specific ways (divine truth) that it interacts and doesn’t, and our mind, heart, soul, and strength (will) have to assimilate to those ways. Two opposing things can hold the same space at the same time, it’s either the energy of love or fear at the most base level of our existence. And the choice is ours. Powerful.

As we grow in understanding of love of divinity, we become a part of it as it works within us to renew our soul in love. It’s the energy of the soul that shapes all the particles it comes into contact within its sphere of influence. Through it, our heavenly Father raises us out of the ashes as His love travels into the deepest parts of our soul and exposes every dust particle of fear and burns it away.

A life without fear knows expansive freedom, joy, peace, love and power. As for the power, it comes from the increasing wisdom in the ability to see clearly once the dust is gone. Thus, we respond, act, and choose ways of wisdom that bring what is truly desirable into our realities.

May we all be “dusted off” by divine love.


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Governance by Fear vs. Love

Governance by Fear vs. Love

 

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

 

Immanuel came to give us of His spirit, a part of the Heavenly Father, to regenerate our minds, hearts, souls, spirits, and flesh in divine love. In this transformation, leading to new creations fashioned in His likeness, the Father’s spirit through love, not of fear, governs us.

Born into Fear

In being disconnected from the ways of divine love, fear has ruled us from our birth. We are taught at a very young age to act or not act in certain ways by fear; fear of punishment, being yelled at, spanked, intimidated, threatened, ignored, rejected, or neglected. We are taught to obey through fear by our families, employers, teachers, officials, spouses, religion, and other relationships.

Further, from our beginning, people treat us in non-loving ways; ways that induce harm thus fear; criticism, judgment, harsh treatment, oppression, abuse and so on. And how thankful we are for the kindness received amongst these. However, we spend the rest of our lives trying to avoid those treatments, thus living by fear. It directs our thoughts, words, actions, behaviors and choices.

Governance of Fear

Governance by fear creates a plethora of problems. Here are three. First, those being governed can never draw close to someone who uses authority by fear, which creates a ubiquitous fear in their lives. Fear creates distance, not closeness. It causes us to want to run from and not draw near to others. If someone desires love from us, presiding over us by fear doesn’t work. We can’t have a relationship of love on a foundation of fear. Fear divides.

Second, if the authoritative party desires love from us, a rule of fear doesn’t allow those following to truly act in love. If we are governed by fear, we make decisions to avoid the fear (criticism, judgment, punishment), thus we aren’t making decisions out of love. We may be more obedient to defined rules, but that doesn’t create new and abundant loving results, only self-preservation. A mindset of fear verses love creates two very different outcomes. A fear-based rule can’t create a love-based reality.

Third, fear gives birth to lies, deception, and hiding ourselves from others, because we fear the consequences. It’s very hard to be totally open and honest under a rule of fear. We want to cover-up our mistakes and that makes it hard to grow and learn from them. For the one to teach us the right way is the one we are trying to hide our mistakes from. Further, we can’t bear the disapproval housed in fear, so we hide ourselves as much as possible. Thus it makes it difficult to deal with our weaknesses and brokenness for our anxiety of those areas being exposed keeps them hidden and unhealed.

Being established on this framework, our fears dictate most of our actions to some degree. In fear of disapproval, being left out, made fun of, forgotten, unloved, and disrespected, we act very differently than if we didn’t fear these things. We all go great lengths to avoid our fears. We haven gotten so use to responding based on our fears we don’t recognize it. It is an undercurrent of our lives to such an extent that it shapes our personality.

A Change of Governance

A ruler of any type of authority can govern by fear or love. Obviously love is far superior for it manifests actions from the followers out of love and not fear, which produce far superior results. However, those under love’s reign have to understand and know love. Without understanding it, they can’t be governed by it. If there is a treasure chest in front of you, but you are blind and can’t see it, you won’t grab a hold of it. Fears are immensely prevalent, seen and known, and divine love is not, so people remain in their fears.

Because fear has been our foundation from our birth, we have to push through fear to seek to learn and know divine love. (Divine love is far different than the love we learn from the world, which is peppered with fears.) The path of understanding divine love isn’t an easy transition for fears go very deep into our subconscious, and are tied to lies and harmful experiences. But this is part of the renewal of our minds by the Spirit of Truth who sets us free so we can be a creation governed by love.

Freed from Fear

Once we intimately know divine love so that we begin to give and receive it, it starts to replace fear in our lives. Through this growing awareness of what is of love and what isn’t we start to become free from fear, and start to be governed by love. Fear is based on lies so it can’t stand in the face of truth. Love is truth, thus in knowing it, it prevails against the fears. Truth always defeats the lies for lies aren’t real and truth is.

Divine love is the fulfillment of all our desires. When we start to experience it, we are transformed by it into spirit-minded creations who think and act according to the ways of God. It becomes our sole desire. Thus, one foundation is replaced with another, and we start to walk in the spirit-mind governed by love and no longer the flesh-mind governed by fear.

New Covenant

The new covenant between our Creator, who is love, and us is a governance of love. Love is the supreme mindset of a creation. It’s one in which the creation will do amazing acts of goodness for others. It’s one in which the creation can always grow and expand into eternal life. It’s one in which the creation desires to become so deeply connected to it’s Creator because it’s drawn into the source of love.

Love seems weak and fear strong only because people have not known divine love. Fear has been the ruling entity in this world. Yet, love is far stronger, for once we taste it, all we want is to go deeper and more of it. We will turn from all that is contrary to the point of becoming willfully and fully governed by God Himself. There is nothing more powerful. The heavenly Father’s righteousness reign is one of love. It is in love that He will come to us to make us His dwelling place in the spirit.

May we be spirits who seek to operate by divine love within ourselves and with others. May all of creation be released from its bondage to fear.

Isaiah 14:3 It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve,


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Testing the Hearts of Mankind

Testing the Hearts of Mankind

Tribulation is coming upon the world. For some they will abide in rest because they’ve enter the true sanctuary of the presence of God. Revelation 3:10 Others, still needing purification from the lusts of the world, will encounter further purging, refining, and testing, so God can move in. Proverbs 17:3, Revelation 2:16

Your circumstances test and reveal your heart for out of your heart springs the issues of life. If you circumstances are of the true peace; then you’re entering into the Kingdom of God. If they are of unrest; you are being tested in whom you serve. Let your circumstances show YOU your heart then fully seek and turn to God’s wisdom. Some will try to run and hide from the turmoil, but they cannot because it comes from within. Others will cry out to the true God and He will answer and lead them on the narrow path of truth into His sanctuary of peace.

The purpose of the tribulation is to lead people to deep repentance from the powers of this world (see below) that control them and drive them into death. God is life. To desire God to govern your mind is to embrace eternal life. In His love, He is purging the powers contrary to His perfect love from your life because they destroy you and others, and hurt Him, for He cares for you.

Thus, some of you are going through a significant testing in your circumstances to reveal whether you truly know and trust the true God. During these trying times of your soul; will you cling to the God of truth and choose His truth over the worldly wisdom and the golden calves of mankind’s creation? As the refining/purging fire comes what will it reveal in your spirit? One clinging to truth or one clinging to the pit of lies? 1 Corin 3:13

The Pit Within

During this time people will come face to face with the pit within them. Within the souls of men is a pit. It’s the shadow of death from a severance in the love bond between them and their Father of Light. Some have been coming out of that pit and walking into the light thus into God’s love, others, in spiritual blindness, cling to it to their destruction. Jeremiah 6:19

People try to run from this internal pit of darkness by doing and clinging to all sorts of things to convince themselves it isn’t there (addictions, religion, busyness, contrived self-exaltation). Yet, at times it surfaces and shows its terror.

The pit sucks any aspect of love from a person’s life and leaves them empty and alone. It creates hypocrisy as they try to flee it in any way possible; even by acts they know are destructive. People are trying to escape and run from this internal darkness and yet in their trying they push into the powers of ruin, thus they are trying to smother death with death. When they feed these powers, they are keeping their souls bound to the pit they are trying to escape. Though God longs to be united to them; they have been imprisoned to serving the lust of the world because their love for it. Thus a pit of darkness and emptiness remains in them.

The pit is full of lies, fear, and pain. It’s where the power of ruins have their anchor in people’s souls. They have to be uprooted; so God can abide within.

Psalm 75:10 All the horns of the wicked I will also cut off, But the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.”

10 Powers (horns) of Ruin

  1. Pride
  2. Flesh worship; images created by world
  3. Hypocrisy
  4. Fear
  5. Dishonor/Oppression/Belittling
  6. Personal vengeance/blame
  7. Lust
  8. Self-power, control
  9. Judging/Criticalness/Condemnation
  10. Covetiveness

These torment the soul. Founded on lies, they are the powers that drive us toward death; what Christ came to destroy with His light/truth. The fullness of Christ in us destroys this pit because He is the consummation of love. This fullness is upon us to be received. When His liquid light of truth and pure love implode that place, then death is destroyed in us forever.

Hebrews 2:14-15 Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Only God can show us the depth, expanse and power of these forces within us because we each have our own network of lies intertwined and twisted since childhood. Thus, the path of freedom entails a very personal interaction with our Creator. Seek their penetration to be expelled from your life, by the strength of God, down to the last residue clinging to the sides of your soul. He came to cleanse your vessel, let Him. To walk out of this pit is to forsake these powers and all related and connected to them.

If you are facing this pit, cry out to the God of truth. Forsake all artificial remedies of the world. It’s only covering death with death; as the lust of this world is the lust for death. Seek the eternal Light. Come to know the mountain of God; the mountain of truth established in unfailing love. Serve no other “truth” or wisdom but seek to serve the wisdom and love beyond this world yet for this world. Christ will not only deliver you, but will fill you with Himself; the most incredible light of truth and love. John 8:32 Be clear who you serve; and there are only two choices the God of truth or the god of lies and deceit. Pray to know the difference.

I’ve told you these things beforehand, so you may endure with fortitude. God is with you; there is tremendous power in trusting the living God. Cry out to Him for He cares for you; but you must receive Him for it’s the nature of love to be received and given.


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Living Day to Day

Living Day to Day

To live day-to-day or to be present-minded, thus to not worry about tomorrow, brings abundant peace and rest as it prohibits worry and fear from talking hold for there are no anxious thoughts of the future for these to grab a hold of.

Isaiah 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.

Hebrews 4:12 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.

This state of mind comes from trusting God. To let go of an unknown future requires either no care (which is to cease to love and refusing to know love) or trust in an all-powerful loving God.

How do you trust God? Know Him in truth and spirit.

We have to seek to know God as we would do with anyone. We have to come to know Him as He is and not by the false images portrayed by organized religion. The constructs of His character have to be established within our minds. Romans 12:2 This is what it means to know someone and trust them because you know their character and it’s a nature you can have great confidence in, even in the unknown. Proverbs 3:26 We trust in not knowing the future, but in God and His character which is faithful, loving and all-powerful.

One of the key aspects to know about God in order to fully trust Him is His love. This sounds obvious and easy, but in a world where love has been tainted in every which way; coming to know His love to a point of a deep trust is something that is built over time. Yet, it can only be built if we consistently and diligently engage God in truth and spirit.

This world has not known the love of God. They have known false images of God that proclaim love but are infused with fear, guilt, and control because those images came out of the corrupted nature of man. It’s mankind creating his own image of God; the essence of religions. We can only know God by seeking for ourselves. It’s an individual endeavor. We can’t know Him from another person. The only way to know God and His love is to go to Him one-on-one and learn about Him personally through our circumstances as He teaches from within, because that is where God meets us and comes to us, within. Because God is an infinite spirit, there is no end to knowing Him.

The deep hunger in our soul; the part that desires to be filled, known, eternally accepted and loved, is the longing to be connected to the source of love in the deepest truest way. This is the place in us created by God for Him to fill and only He can for He created it in us for Himself. He did this because He loves us and desires a bond of love with us. True contentment comes by being filled and united with His presence, the Great Spirit who gives life to our souls.

When we come to this unity; peace rules our minds and hearts.

Colossians 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.

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No More Sickness or Sorrow

No More Sickness or Sorrow

This video expands upon the previous blog post, it may help to read it as well. Some powerful truths here.

1 Peter 1:22-23 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,

Revelation 21:4 “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

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Obstacles to Seeking God

Obstacles to Seeking God


Proverbs 8:17 love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me.

When I started cultivating a relationship with God, there were obstacles I had to overcome; barriers that suppressed my motivation to seek God as He calls us to.

Giving up our ways and will isn’t easy but that is what moving into a real relationship with God requires. It’s a willingness to go down another path, to acknowledge our ways might be wrong and to change direction. The very concept of seeking means we are looking for something we haven’t discovered before and when we find it to be willing to let it change us.

Letting go to embrace the truth of God begins with understanding what we are holding onto and why. When we understand the nature of our blockades then we can penetrate it with God’s truth. God showed me two significant lies I held that kept a wall between Him and I, two I believe many others share; a fear of embracing all of God’s character and putting others between us and God so the relationship is impersonal and indirect.

First, I was misled that if I fully embraced God as all powerful, just, righteous, and sovereign, then hardships and intense tribulations would consume my life. What if He led me down a path like Job’s, sent me to places I didn’t want to go, or made me live in outward depravity? I wasn’t ready for that life, nor did I want it. So I kept a safe distance and sought Him very little. It feels similar to thinking about getting married, for some of us. The fear of being hurt, making the wrong choice, and being stuck in something we don’t want can plague our thoughts. These fears block openness and trust that are required to move forward in a relationship. However, when the desire is strong to be united to someone, then the longing starts to override the fears. I came to the point in my life when my desire to be united in truth to God was overriding my fear of letting go and trusting Him. I began to seek within a comfort zone by spending a little time with God each day. God is patient and longsuffering. He meets us where we are at. He knows our thoughts, fears, and doubts about Him. He knows everything. They don’t disappear in an instance, but over time as we get to know Him. He connects with us in whatever season of life we are in and works with the faith we have.

Over time, as I learned about God the fear began to subside. He was much different than what I had been taught. He opened my eyes to the truth and it replaced the fears I held onto. He showed me His true character in the circumstances of my life and my trust grew.

God’s love is unlike any love we know. He desires the very best for us. When we commit to learning about Him, we discover who He is and not who we created Him to be; the image that made us fear being close to Him. This image, which we learned from the world, false teachings, family dynamics, and other mediums, is gradually replaced with the truth producing a real relationship with God; a relationship according to His design, not ours. He taught me I had nothing to fear and that He was my hope, life and the source to everything I needed and truly desired. When you taste of God’s love, mercy, care and goodness, a hunger develops to be consumed by Him.

We don’t need to be afraid to learn who God is. As we spend time with Him we learn this truth. We don’t have to fear what Job went through. Though his trial was intense, it lasted only a season, it wasn’t his life. Job’s life was incredibly blessed. Job 42:10-17 There have been times in my life where I went through something so difficult that I thought I would rather die than live, but those times were only for a season. Overall my life has been exceptionally blessed. In hindsight, I wouldn’t change my past. Those hard times taught me truths that I probably couldn’t have learned any other way and those truths set me free to have a better present. Most of my trials came from my own stubbornness, depravity and living lies. If I would have sought and trusted in God’s way initially I would have avoided many hardships, but those times brought me to Him, so I am thankful. Unfortunately most of us grow by difficulties not ease. We grow by experience not theories.

As we spiritually mature, our fear will continue to fade and the only dread we will have is being separated from God in any way. Bit by bit we surrender a little more. We must fight the influence of this world telling us that a life with God is anything but glorious. God is life. In Him we experience true life.

My second blockade was people. Godly men and women were my bridge to God. I didn’t trust or believe that I could learn and know God like these seemingly godly people. Besides, my time was limited and I didn’t have the time to give to search out His depths like they did. What if God thought about me like that? What kind of relationship is this I am offering Him, one all about me? I depended on others to teach me, lead me and nurture my spirituality. God and I had an indirect relationship. I only knew Him through others because I put the church system and others in place of Him. It’s like spending time with our spouse’s friends instead of your husband. We will learn a little about him, but we lack the intimacy of a true marriage. God calls us to know Him personally, not just hear about Him from another’s words, sermons, books, or teachings. God has given us His spirit, His Word and He is calling each one of us to come to Him directly. This intimacy is Christ’s gift to us.

Letting go of the middle man takes faith and faith comes from the Word. Come to God in the quiet of the day and ask God who He is; to show you His truth and ways. To open your eyes and ears to see and hear Him.

Seek God. Don’t be afraid of drawing near to Him because any fear isn’t real. He is love. But you must fight your fears by drawing a little closer each day so you can experience His goodness. And don’t hand your relationship over to another. It’s yours to nurture and develop. When you do you will discover a relationship that will be your greatest treasure.

Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.


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Our Core Issue Affecting All Else

 

Our Core Issue Affecting All Else

I’m discovering when you dive into the issues, fears, bad choices, and unhealthy behaviors of people, the core cause is a lack of inherent value, which comes from a feeling of rejection.

I’m beginning to think this core issue (which has many faces) is the black hole in each one of our souls, which the only remedy is oneness with God.

At birth, Our Creator, the One who matters above all, is disconnected from us because of the sin nature we are born into. In this disconnect, we experience a sense of rejection that breeds a lack of value. (Deep unchanging value comes from God. A fullness and completeness of us comes by being connected to Him.)

However, this gap between God and us isn’t our intended state. We were created to be one with God in a bond of love. But because of our corruption that comes from choosing self over Him, we are rejected. God can’t be united to that which isn’t holy, for He is holy. That self-seeking aspect of us that leads us to follow self verses God is the sin that was passed along through Adam. He chose to follow himself and do what he thought best instead of walk in unity with God. Thus, he severed the bond with God and was cast out of His presence. Because we are all connected, that corrupted state is a part of us.

To our further destruction, we spend our lives trying to fill that void with everything but God. The world, governed by the first one to reject God and go his own way (Lucifer), offers a smorgasbord of lies promising to fill that vast hole. They are empty vanities of how we can gain the value we desperately need to rid ourselves of that feeling of rejection. Relationships, sex, lust, goodness, self-righteousness, the perfect parents, children who love us, success, financial wealth, perfect bodies, power, perfect health, fame, control, and so on.

In trying to fill this void and suppress the feeling of rejection, we develop all kinds of bad habits to “protect” ourselves and gain value. We build walls, lash out to control others, manipulate emotionally, withdraw from others, and become people pleasers. We become slaves to others brokenness as we try to earn approval and acceptance. We stomp on others to make ourselves stronger. We become addicted to substances/things to subdue our feelings. We surround ourselves with people trying to fill the void, yet remain completely alone.

The only way to remedy our state is to be reconciled to the One by which that void was created, God. All those other things can’t accomplish what we desire, because they can’t. God loves us. He wants us to be reconciled back to Him as He showed us through Christ Jesus.

Only through Christ, our eternal forgiveness and reconciliation, is the pathway to God opened. However, Jesus is only the door. To find deliverance from the destruction we created and oneness, we have to journey into gate and into God’s presence. By abiding in God’s presence, (seeking His face to know Him and be one with Him), we are put on a path of healing and restoration for our souls. We experience God and His love. We understand how our ways lead to death and how His lead to life and the fulfillment and satisfaction of our souls. Through this journey, we chose God above all else.

Having spent our lives trying to obtain value from all these other sources, it takes time to develop a relationship with God that is strong enough to trust Him to let go of all these other things. Though they haven’t worked, we hold onto the hope that they do, because the world tells us they do. We have to intimately know God to the extent to be able to truly turn from all that we have held on to, thus turn from self (true repentance) and be deeply rooted to Him, nothing else.

God wants nothing to fill that void but Him because only He can. He created us to be in a bond of love with Him, therefore nothing else will suffice. Anything else is an idol, which is full of empty hope. God is offering Himself to us; we only need to embrace Him in truth and spirit.

In theory, turning from self and embracing God sounds easy. I’ve found it isn’t. The path to oneness with God is narrow and few find it, because the multitude of lies in this world that tells us the contrary. It’s a journey that has to be walked with God one-on-one. No one can do it for us. We can’t do it by listening to others talk about it or talk about God. Others can only point the way. We have to spend time with God like someone we love. Though this process we get to know Him, so we can trust Him and let go of everything we tried to use to fill that void and be united to Him. In giving up the empty hopes, what we lose is the superficial temple we built trying to find our own glory. What we gain is who we were created to be as one united to God.

Dig deep into God. What are those things that you are defining yourself by? Those things you are trying to fill that void with? Seek God to know Him as He is. In time, you will start letting all vanity to embrace the One who can fill you as you desire.


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Anchored in Love

Anchored in Love

 

Below is a video of an insight I wanted to share with you about love. I suppose this is love week 😉 Check out my post from Monday, A Lesson in Love from My Cats too.

All my videos can be found at http://www.youtube.com/stirringthedeep

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All All All Always

All All All Always

 

2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

This verse is perhaps one of the most encouraging in all the New Testament when you are up against something outside your comfort zone.

As children of God, the limits of this physical world no longer apply to us, yet often in the midst of a physical trial we forget this truth. Fear starts to creep in and our minds and emotions succumb to the world’s wisdom. We become defeated by the things that in truth have no more control over us.

As a young child, in my room was a door to the attic. My mind concocted all kinds of things that filled that attic and that would creep out in the middle of the night to get me. My imagination often sent me running into my parents’ bedroom.

Our childhood monsters filled our young minds with terrifying encounters that brought sleepless hours hidden under the covers, and often made us flee into the haven of our parents’ bedrooms. In reality they didn’t exist, but our minds gave them power and we responded to them. We weren’t mature enough to realize they weren’t real.

Our minds are powerful tools. What we believe and what we give power to creates our reality. Childhood monsters were very real and we reacted to them. In the same way if we believe a circumstance, person or weakness has dominion over us we will react accordingly. We will fear, cower, give up, and run away. However, once a child of God and no longer living without God in this world, our trying situations become powerless childhood monsters. Only our unbelief of who God is and who we are in Him makes them real stealing our freedom, peace, and life.

Two beliefs are essential to overcoming our monsters and moving outside our comfort zones; God is always by our side and who is with us is mightier than anything we will ever face. There isn’t a circumstance, person, or personal weakness that can defeat us because God works through us to overcome all – if we trust Him.

Trust is the key to unlocking the power of these beliefs in our lives. We trust God when we know Him. In all our relationships in order to trust someone we have to know them. The same is true with God. When we personally know God, then we trust and the natural result is faith, trust in action. We don’t have to grunt out a faithful response, it is what we do as we draw near to Him.

Psalm 9:10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You.

How do we know God? By the combination of His Word and Spirit working in us. He gives us His Spirit and our part is to put His Word in our minds. If we neglect our part we will be defeated. Without knowledge of Him we aren’t able to trust to the extent that is required for victorious living. God wants to be known by us. This truth was His desire throughout the Old and New Testament because knowing Him leads to everything else. He is our portion, but how can we trust in what we don’t know?

When you know that the monsters aren’t real then you move ahead out of your comfort zone following God’s lead in your life. When we know God then anything we face holds victory. Knowing takes time but it is a journey that brings freedom and peace into our lives. If we seek Him, He will reveal Himself.

We all start out as babes in God’s presence with irrational fears, anxieties and discomforts. It is normal. If we deeply knew who was by our side nothing would shake us. We have much to learn, and it is to our travesty if we stay spiritual babes when we should be maturing into adults enjoying abundant life. In maturity we know, trust and act on the truth that we have all, all, all always.

Realize the monsters aren’t real and they are only powerful because you forgot who is by your side. Take what you know of Him today and believe it and continue to learn of Him that the victory may be yours.

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Healing the Wounds Left by a Father

Healing the Wounds Left by a Father

 

Someone made a comment on my post Fear of God – Beginning of Wisdom about how though I was blessed with a wonderful earthly father, many aren’t. I was asked to address those who haven’t been so fortunate. I don’t necessary think I’m most qualified to address such an issue, but I wanted to honor the request and share with you want I have learned from my friends who have had issues with their fathers. I was thankful for the suggestion because many of my friends fall into the latter category. In fact, this past week as I was visiting my family many conversations came up about the impact of fathers. We talked about the effects of no fathers, fathers who neglected, over protected, who loved. Here are my thoughts . . .

Unfortunately, many men have done a poor job as a father. Like the rest of us they are fallen and far from perfect. But the role they have has such an impact in our lives that their actions effect us more than most. Fatherhood is a great responsibility. It’s a job that reveals a man’s greatest weaknesses and to those he is supposed to love the most. As a result of those weaknesses, some have abandoned, neglected, abused, and overly controlled their children. Among my friends those who didn’t have a good experience with their fathers instead had with a relationship of lack that left them with deep wounds, anger, pain, disoriented paths, and vast voids in their lives.

So if the experience with your father left a huge void or vaults of pain in your life, how can you draw near to a God who says He is your father? How do you know really what that truly means? How can you trust God to be your father, when your only experience of a father was none at all or crappy?

Initially how we view God is related to how we viewed our father. We carry over the framework given to us from our father to God. But this obviously isn’t where we are to stay mentally or emotionally – whether our experience was good or bad – we each need to seek God as He is and if we do He will teach us and show us who He is. He is able to give us what we never had in our earthly relationships, if we seek. John 14:21

Talking to one of my friends about her experience with her dad, she said, it’s true he left a big hole in my soul, but it provided a larger place for God to fill. Because of that lack it pushed me closer to God seeking from Him what I didn’t get from my dad. I have been blessed to know and depend on God in this way.

This is the treasure in broken relationships; God comes into the brokenness in such intimate way. Wounded souls gain a special relationship that is nourishing and rich with God because of the lack they had. They deeply connect with Him in a way they otherwise wouldn’t.

Often it’s the void, in whatever area of our lives that drives us to seek God with passion with our hearts, souls and minds. The wound, the pain, and the emptiness are powerful drivers. God uses these driving forces to turn something deeply painful into something amazingly blessed. Our fathers have a big impact in our lives, how much more our heavenly Father if we let Him in into the depths of our pain and sorrow? It’s about perspective. We can either see our past experiences as a never ending wound in our lives or we can see it as an opportunity to experience the presence of God in a very intimate and personal way. Where do you want to be? Which one are you fostering in your life?

Our earthly fathers, whether good or bad, are to point and drive us to our heavenly Father.

A mistake often made is getting caught up in looking to our earthly fathers to repair the damage they left behind. We aren’t to look to them but God. God is our eternal Father; our earthly fathers are but a vapor Psalm 39:5. We need to be careful not to put too much focus on the temporary because then we neglect the eternal. We are to seek God to complete and fill us, to heal and restore us. As for our earthly fathers we have to abandon the hold they have on us, or we will remain living out our lives in a reaction to theirs. We are called to live in the spirit in the newness of life, not the past. With God’s grace we can. Only God can truly enable us to move forward. Though, I haven’t had to do with my father, I have in other areas. Freedom comes from Him, and He is able to set us free from whatever binds our souls. As long as we look to our earthly fathers to play a part in delivering us from the pain we are looking in the wrong place and often will be greatly disappointed.

You can’t wait on them to change, to apologize, to make good for the damage they did. Because many never will due to blindness to their own lack. The truth is we are fallen. We cause others pain. We damage with our actions and our words. We all fall short. God is offering freedom from that bondage of pain caused by others. It is a process no doubt especially with our fathers, but is a journey that in the end will fill you with gratitude for the earthly father you had because of what it brought to you in your relationship with God. It may be hard to believe, but God loves you more than you know. He wants to give you what you never had if you will open yourself up to Him. He wants to go into the reservoir of that pain and abide, and turn it into rivers of love.

Psalm 147:3 He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.

Romans 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”

If you are God’s, you have a new Father, embrace Him.

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