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Desiring to Fly

Desiring to Fly

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For years I sought my legs to be healed, but this weekend my prayer of 17 years changed along with a much deeper understanding. I now desire to have wings. Here is a bit of what I learned.

Walking Trees

Mark 8:24 And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.”

We are trees (an analogy to our spiritual condition) and the problem is we walk.  In this verse, “walking” comes from a root word meaning to tread upon, to trample, to smite, to treat with insult or contempt. Every time we “walk” (speak, act, or move) we have the propensity to hurt others. This is a huge bondage and affliction to those who desire to love perfectly.

In a dead soul-state, we trample others uncaringly and often intentionally through various mindsets, words, and actions. We condemn, blame, hold grudges, hurt with our words, don’t forgive, oppress, control, manipulate and so on. Death is a void of love. As we start to awaken to the love of God out of our death sleep, thus awaken to love itself, we no longer want to cause others harm, we only want healing for all. And, the closer we draw near to the source of love, the stronger this desire becomes. Yet our personalities that have been crafted in corruption possess an enormous propensity to hurt others despite our desire to love.

Our personalities are our instructions on how to operate in this life. Through them we communicate and interact with others. These are the “garments” we wear. Just like the actual clothes we wear reflect our personality. The foundations of our personalities, our automatic reactions, habits and ways, are fashioned by many things including pain and corruption. Therefore without effort or even desiring to, we hurt others and ourselves. As long as our personalities remain the same, we continually harm others despite our heart to love.

Having a heart desirous to love and yet a personality that harms becomes our deepest affliction, for how is our very makeup changed so that we never cause harm?

We have to become flying trees (butterflies).

Flying Trees

We have to become a creature of the air moved only by the wind (spirit), our wings, and no longer a creature of the earth moved by our own will, our legs.

To love as our hearts’ desire, our personality has to radically change from one articulating itself from a foundation of corruption and pain, and become one expressing itself from a foundation of love and wisdom/truth. It’s like a caterpillar changing into a butterfly, nothing stays the same. Thus, we need new parents; Love and Wisdom, who are our heavenly Father/Mother, the Godhead.

With Love and Wisdom as our parents, first they fashion a new heart in us in their likeness. This occurs as we feast on the pure truth from Christ’s spirit within and start walking according to that truth. As we grow in love and understanding, a new heart is fashioned within us. This new heart is the establishment of the Holy of Holies within us.

Once our heart is re-created, then our garments, our personality, is re-fashioned in such a way that our actions align with the purified heart within. This transition comes as we start to take flight. We take flight when we become solely powered by the spirit of God. His spirit is liken to the wind in that it moves yet is unseen. Though we have seen reflections of our new heart in our actions, as long as we are walking we are in imminent danger of trampling someone else.  We can’t walk perfectly no matter our desire. We have to obtain a new mode of movement where we are at rest and only the spirit of God carries us, thus to fly.

When our inner chambers, Holy of Holies, have been re-created by truth to hold the spirit of God, His spirit moves in. As His spirit/wind within us starts to stir and move, we start to take flight. He begins to take over all our modalities and govern them. We are no longer creatures of the earth, dust, flesh, but we become living creatures of the air, wind, spirit. As the spirit of God moves us, our personality, garments, begins to reflect our Parents. They control all of us, thus our personality now reflects their nature. Thus, we are able to truly love.

Like a caterpillar, in this transition, we lose our mode of movement throughout the earth, our legs, and we gain a new mode of movement, wings, by which we travel through the air. This transition is part of our spiritual metamorphosis of becoming a caterpillar to a butterfly, a walking tree to a flying tree.

When we are filled with the spirit of God, this is what we become; a creation of the air. We become a living creation with wings, as the only entity governing our movement is the spirit of God from within us. What a glorious state this is. This is our salvation, when we are saved from ourselves, our own corruption.


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Sensory Perceptions Carnal to Spiritual

Sensory Perceptions:

Carnal to Spiritual

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As we become lights in this world, a reflection of the divine spirit of the heavenly Father, our sensory perceptions change as part of our transformation. They become transmitters of His light into the world. Where we once were governed by our senses from an “outward > in” point of view, we are now governed by an “inward > out” point of view.

Our senses: seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching, work together to formulate our understanding and perspectives. A carnal mind takes in sensations from the world whose interpretation and understanding are derived from the mass consciousness (cumulative thought of mankind). These sensory perceptions inform us of the physical world. By what we see, hear, smell, taste and touch, we determine want we want and desire as translated by the mass consciousness. Thus, they become the drivers to all kinds of desires directed and governed by the wisdom, understanding, and compulsions of the mass consciousness. For example, you see a picture of a juicy hamburger and the mass consciousness translates that as something to be desired (through its communication channels, media, advertising, etc), thus you desire it.

A spirit mind uses these sensory perceptions in a different way. With the spirit mind, God is in control and governing our thoughts and desires (pure consciousness and NOT mass consciousness), including our sensory receptacles. He translates our sensory perceptions from WITHIN by His divine spirit (pure consciousness). He does this by transforming our sensory modalities from mass consciousness derivatives to pure consciousness outputs. It is no longer what is without that determines our actions, but His sprit that is within. For example, He establishes in us a love for all creation, thus we have cruelty free diets. The images/messages of the hamburger have no impact on our desires, only His understanding, wisdom and love.

Acting by this renewed perception creates a radically different reality as it becomes full of actions grounded in God’s wisdom and love. Christ creates our reality, which is now His, by these renewed sensory communicators. It’s through these senses the character of Christ is pushed out from within us into the world around us. Thus, we are creators (givers) of light and life, and no longer consumers of darkness. He is creating our reality from within out, thus crafting our entire reality into His home, His living temple.

When our sensory perceptions come from “within > out”, they are governed by His spirit, thus our perceptions are formulated in true understanding and wisdom. This heightened and purified understanding travelling through our senses infuses our thoughts, words and behaviors with His nature/light. Understanding, truth, and love implode our senses, thus our lives and the lives of others.

There is a lot here and I’ll be doing videos on them later this week … but here is a brief outline of each with an example.

5 Spiritual Senses

  1. Eyes of Understanding: All that we see is filtered by His truth, understanding and perfect love (fire of God). Thus we act by faith, and not by sight. Ex: You see others in a framework of perfect love, as God sees them, and in that new vision you are able to give them perfect love.
  2. Ears of Wisdom: Our ears are attuned to voice of God within us. Through the journey of seeking Him, we’ve learned to hear and follow His voice. As we are fully united to Him, His voice becomes our inner voice.  Thus the wisdom for a given situation comes from within. By this wisdom, we live as a spirit being who acts in harmony with His law of love. As we follow that inner voice, His purposes and will are manifested in the world. Ex: The inner voice gives you counsel on how to respond to a certain situation. You follow and peace is created where peace once wasn’t. This hearing creates an incredible reality reflecting His wisdom.
  3. Smell of discernment:  This sense relays the true nature of something or someone. It picks up the fragrance of life versus the stench of death. It’s like the sense of when something “smells fishy” (suspicious). It gives us an accurate knowing of someone or something, as God desires us to know, that enables us to respond in line with God’s character. For example, your ability to discern between true prophets and false ones, or accurate teachings and deceptions.
  4. Taste of desire: Our taste is what directs our desires. What we have a taste for or not is what we desire or don’t. As our desires are now His, our tastes for things, activities, people, ways, will be His. Ex: We no longer have a taste (desire) for violent movies, or we no longer have a taste for meat.
  5. Touch of healing: Our touch directs how we interact in our physical lives with the world around us. When He governs our touch, every behavior and act is done out of perfect love, truly a healing touch. Ex: Your actions toward your spouse are out of perfect love and nothing else.

As we are united to the divine through Christ, all our senses are regenerated to reflect the wisdom, character, nature, understanding and love of the heavenly Father. It’s Him, in us, pouring Himself into the world though these modalities, thus we are lights to the world, His light.

These transformed sensory communicators allow the spirit of life to shine outward from us, where before in the carnal mind we gathered to ourselves what we wanted from our senses.

The transformations of our senses enable the shining of our lamps. Among others, there are three ways those with these modalities will shine. They will possess:

  1. Greater wisdom, thus becoming smarter as they are operating by the wisdom of God in their circumstances.
  2. Increasing loving kindness pouring forth from an abundance mindset.
  3. Ability to abide in and create peace and harmony.

These are the fruit bearing trees. There is a lot here to consider, may you see the magnificent power, perfection, beauty and love these transformations create within thus without.


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Sealed by God vs 666

Sealed by God vs 666

 

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10  The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

View on YouTube

 


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Are You Spirit-Minded Or Flesh-Minded?

Are You Spirit-Minded Or Flesh-Minded?


Romans 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

 

What is spirit-minded versus carnal or flesh-minded?

The flesh is our self-will and all that it produces and manifests. It’s our self-created values, idols, and philosophies. It’s what we trust and hope in other than God’s truth. It’s the outcomes of corruption that come from following the flesh. Gal 5:19-21 It’s defining and creating our own goodness and righteousness. Isaiah 64:6 It’s based in fear. 2 Timothy 1:7 It’s everything derived from following self and the elements of the world created by self, versus God. Thus, the flesh-mind is one consumed and governed by self and the corresponding beliefs.

Is your hope in the wisdom of mankind? What do your actions show? Do you have a fear of man? Do you strive to please others? To please yourself? If so, your god is man. You serve mankind, and have a flesh-mind, which end is death. We’ve all been there at one point, but it’s not where we are to stay. Galatians 1:10

The spirit is what is of God. It’s knowing God’s truth and living the outcomes of it. Galatians 5:22 It’s a state of peace, rest, love and delight. It’s trusting in God in all things so you enter into a state of internal and external rest in all things. (The rest allows God’s spirit to move through you as He wills, like a leaf directed by the wind. Rest is a testimony of trust.) Hebrews 4:11 It’s becoming like a child who trusts his Father’s complete protection, provision, love and care and therefore lives in delight and in the desires of his heart. Psalm 37:4-5 Mark 10:15 It’s giving over all judgment to God to decide what is good and what isn’t, thus letting Him direct your life. John 5:30 It’s owning Christ’s righteousness and walking in it. When we are spirit-minded we have a mind like Christ, surrendered to God’s will, filled with God’s truth, and governed by the Spirit of God. Galatians 2:20, 2 Corin 5:17

Do you have a fear of God? Do you care about what He thinks above others? Are you seeking and moving into His will in all areas of your life? Is your trust growing in Him? Then you are on the path of being spirit-minded.

Galatians 5:24-25 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish

To be spirit-minded, the flesh has to be destroyed. To remain flesh-minded is death because it’s counter and in opposition to God, who is life.

How do you know you are spirit-minded or flesh-minded?

What do you think about most of the day? What do you talk about? Who do you serve? What do you meditate on? Where do you put your hope? In what/who do you trust? What consumes your time? What do you put first on your list? Who has taught you the beliefs you live by? From who have you gained the “wisdom” you live by? Psalm 1:1-3, 2 Corin 1:12

These answers will tell you who/what owns your mind, the flesh or the spirit. Who/what owns your mind, owns you. We start out imprisoned by a flesh-mind that leads us down paths of destruction and death, but the TRUTH came to set us free.

Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

Which are you cultivating?

Galatians 6:8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life

Because what you believe and focus on you create as a creative being made in the image of God, if you are focusing on and sowing a flesh-mindset, then you are creating corruption leading to death. If you are sowing a spirit-mind, then you are reaping eternal abundant life.

What do you sow? Who do you listen to? What do you read? What do you seek? How do you spend your time? Are they in accordance to the wisdom of mankind or the wisdom of God? Do you know the difference? The flesh-mindset is far more enveloping than most realize. In recent weeks, my eyes have been opening to its pervasiveness. It’s everywhere. 2 Corinthians 13:5

When we sow to the flesh, we search out answers and solutions from mankind’s intellect and wisdom, even in spiritual matters. 1 Corinthians 3:19 If you trust others to teach you about God, you are sowing to the flesh, because you are putting your trust in mankind. Do you see? In everything we are to seek the truth and wisdom of God, because that of the world is a twisted, corrupted, opposing and degenerate version of true wisdom.

When we sow to the spirit, we seek truth from God, we are taught by Him and not by man. 1 Corinthians 2:13-14, John 6:45 We seek to know the truth in all things, we have a love for THE Truth. 2 Thess 2:10. (How to Seek the Kingdom of God)

Gaining a spirit-mind and leaving the flesh mind behind is a journey. When you are on the right path you know it because your life is a testimony to you.


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WHY Christians Live with a Dual Nature?

WHY Christians Live with a Dual Nature?

 

God, I did it again – I was pushover and let others walk all over me. Why do I have to be so weak? What am I afraid of? Change me! I don’t want to do this anymore! It hurts me and others so why do I still struggle with this? Why, why, why?

Have you ever felt like this? Wondering why you continue to struggle with a certain part of you particularly when it hurts you and others? These unwanted aspects of us are of our flesh nature (our self-will in rebellion to God’s will). When we are born into this world we are spiritually dead because of sin that separates us from God. When God breathes eternal life into us, a new spirit is born in us. With a new heart, not a changed one, the flesh and spirit co-exist.

In previous posts, Where to Focus – A Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Why Do Christians Seem Two-faced?, I’ve written about the spirit and flesh dynamic. I promised to talk about why we still battle the flesh, when we’ve been given a new spirit. So why does our old nature remain with a wicked heart? Why couldn’t all traces of our old life be gone forever now? Though the source of our old life is dead in Christ its lingering stench remains in our life, why? Galatians 5:24, Romans 7:15-20

There are several reasons. In 2 Corinthians 12:9 Paul was pleading for his weakness to be removed, but God let it remain so that he would learn God’s grace is sufficient. That is one of many reasons. Here are a few more I’ve been thinking about:

Reason 1: God is Glorified

It is God’s purposeful design to have His Spirit in our fallen bodies. 2 Corinthians 4:7 Living with this duality, God shows His power and mercy in the expression of the fruit of the spirit through our lives. God is to be glorified, not us. Aware of our fallen state, when we experience the fruit of the spirit, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, it is truly a glorious thing. It is clearly not of us and to sense the power of God working in us is an amazing gift and testimony to others. Hence, God receives praise and honor for what He as done.

Reason 2: Magnitude of God’s Love

Despite our frame, God’s love is boundless to the extent of making us His children. Romans 5:8 The carnal mind can’t comprehend the things of God. We can only know God if we are born of the spirit. Our flesh remains once we have the spirit of truth so we can clearly see what we were in the flesh. Without the spirit of truth we are blinded to our own depravity. But when we see in the light our wretchedness, His love becomes overwhelming. He loved us so much that He wanted us to be a part of His family so we could spend eternity with Him. He loved us despite how we acted, thought, and rebelled. If we were only spirit we couldn’t understand the magnitude of His love that loves us despite who we were.

In addition, in plainly seeing our wretchedness, we learn His love isn’t based on our actions. His love is unconditional because that is who He is. This lesson is critical to learn in order to have an intimate relationship with Him. Otherwise we think His love is based on the extent of our goodness. With our flesh lingering which deserves no love, His love astounds us. We have never experience unconditional love like we do with Him.

Reason 3: Dependency on God

Without God we can do nothing, but with Him we are complete and perfect. John 15:5 As we live with the two lives in contradiction, we realize how much our flesh is helpless, destructive, and full of death. We start to see the lies we lived by and the death they brought to us and others. Our emptiness and lack becomes undeniable. Along with this new perspective of our old life, we begin to learn about the new life we have in Him; its purity, love, completeness, holiness, peace and joy. The contrast in our lives fills us with gratitude and praise for the tremendous gift He has given us. We begin to comprehend the extent of Christ’s sacrifice, its power and love to give undeserving broken souls beautiful new lives so they no longer have to live in the misery of the old.

Reason 4: Submission to His Lordship

We learn first hand anything that comes from our will leads to death, therefore with each new awareness of the depravity of our flesh we freely submit to His Lordship. With eyes wide open to the contrast of the flesh verses the spirit, each one of us experiences that His ways are better. Learning these truths in the presence of our fallen flesh moves us to choose to yield to His Lordship. God wants us to submit freely, not forced, because that is what true love does. The contrast draws us closer to God; loving Him more for all that He has done and given us. We have to understand the truth of who we are or aren’t and who He is so without reserve we will surrender to Him in love.

There is nothing good about the flesh, but it lingers to teach us many important lessons.

Bit of encouragement

Sometimes we succumb to the rule of our old nature because of spiritual immaturity. We don’t recognize the flesh for what it is, or we are taken off guard and a flesh mindset sets in and takes over. The good news is one we are covered in Christ’s righteousness every moment of every day and two God always provides a way out – prayer. He has given all we need to overcome the flesh – a new spirit, His Word, prayer, and His power. We need to nourish the new spirit, abide in His Word, learn to recognize the flesh, and use the power of prayer given to us in the moment the flesh starts to take over.

When the flesh starts to dominate, we can call upon God and He is faithful to deliver us from ourselves. Sometimes in these moments we might not feel like praying, because the flesh is in rebellion to it, but do it anyway. Prayer is very powerful because through prayer we shift to trusting in His power instead of our own. If we try to overcome our weakness by ourselves we’ll fight a losing battle. God always provides a way out of our temptations. We won’t find the strength in us, but we will in Him, every time.

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Why do Christians Seem Two-Faced?

Why do Christians Seem Two-Faced?

Two Face

Scenario One:
A married Christian friend, Sarah, vehemently expressed her disbelief about how a mutual friend of yours could cheat on her husband and claim to be a Christian. The next week you are out with some friends and Sarah starts flirting with another man.

Scenario Two:
You’re out one night with some friends, and your married Christian friend, Rebecca, starts flirting with another man.

These two women, Sarah and Rebecca, represent the two definitions of being two-faced.

Two-faced (adj)

1. The first definition is hypocritical or double-dealing; deceitful. It is the definition we most commonly associate with this term and is represented by Sarah. She claimed one thing then did another.

2. The second definition is literally having two faces or surfaces. True Christians have two conflicting natures – one driven by their flesh one driven by their spirit – in a sense two faces. This is represented by Rebecca. She didn’t claim one thing then do another, so she wasn’t being hypocritical. What we saw was the face of her flesh.

Christians who are two-faced in regards to the first definition are those who aren’t Christians and say they are or those who think or claim they are “good”.

We all understand hypocrisy, but what we often misunderstand are those who fall under the second definition.

This post touches upon an area that is often misunderstood in Christianity– even among Christians. How often have we heard from other Christians something like- “I can’t believe she did that – and she is a Christian!”

Battle between the flesh and spirit

In a previous blog, Where to Focus – A Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, I talked about the battle authentic Christians face between the flesh and spirit. The more I abide in God’s Word the more the dissonance between my flesh and spirit becomes apparent. It is a strange phenomenon living with this duality. And one that people can’t understand if they have never experienced it. This is why many non-Christians can’t understand why Christians are so faulty. How can we talk about this new life and yet do things so contrary? How can we talk about the love of God in our lives and yet do something so utterly unloving?

The reason is we are living with two wills – one of the flesh and one of the spirit. (flesh being our self-will and spirit being of the will of God) Sometimes the one we don’t want, the flesh, is the one that shows up in situations. Romans 7:15-25 We do what we don’t want to do. When our self-will takes over, then bam we’re critical, inappropriately judgmental, complaining, hurtful, selfish, passive, prideful, arrogant, and so on.

If you are truly a Christian you don’t want to do these things, but you do and a lot more often than you want to. Growing in the spirit life takes time. It is a journey. God designed it this way for several reasons that I’ll address in a later blog.

In the beginning, Christians understand their corrupted nature. It is this awareness that helps them to grasp the meaning and purpose of Jesus’ sacrifice. However, immediately after the awareness of a new life – sometimes it’s assumed that they are supposed to be immediately good. I don’t believe it works that way. It is a process.

The spirit starts small in us like a baby – it takes time for the spirit to grow. It takes time abiding in God’s Word, which is the nourishment for our spirit. (Which few truly do.) If we don’t abide, then our spirit stays weak and the flesh dominates. It takes years for our spirit to grow even with proper nourishment – like it does a child. As we learn and grow throughout our entire physical lives, so do we in our spiritual lives. We will never walk perfectly in the spirit while living in these physical bodies. So there will always be a falleness about us. But if we nourish our spirit, it will grow stronger and over time we live more in the spirit than in the flesh. 1 Corinthians 3:1-3

No One is Good

Usually our judgment of goodness is based on each other. Well I’m better than him! I’m better than most! I’m a pretty good person! But God views goodness from His goodness. And that is the goodness I’m talking about. No one is good against the standard of a holy, pure and perfect God. That is why God gave us Jesus Christ to stand in our place. He judges our goodness against true goodness – not our definitions which vary person to person. And His judgment is the only one that matters.

We would do ourselves a huge favor by removing this misnomer of goodness. Any true goodness is of God and God working in us. It is all Him. John 15:5

Being Hypocritical

If we accept the praise of goodness from others or call ourselves or anyone else good we are being hypocritical and fall under the first definition. Then we are being a poor witness to the truth that no one is truly good but God.

Matthew 19:17 So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

I love this verse because it lays it all out. We aren’t good. We enter eternal life not by our goodness, but by Christ’s. One of His commandments is to trust in His righteousness not our own. If we trust in our own, we will be judged by our own, and in the eyes of a holy God we don’t have a chance of standing for a second.

When you see Christians acting “out of line” – don’t be so quick to judge. We are to help one another not stand pointing a finger. It is a struggle for all of us. And the closer you draw near to God and His purity the more you see yourself as you are without Him, wretched, and the more understanding and compassion you will have for the struggle of others. God is judge. We are to encourage and exhort each other not because it is about being good, but when we walk in His commands and wisdom we walk closer with Him and experience more of the abundant life He came to give and His power is shown to the world.

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Where to focus – A Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Where to focus?

A Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

With a background in psychology, I’m fascinated with why people do what they do including me. I believe seeking understanding of ourselves and others is tremendously valuable because a deeper understanding leads to compassion and true love.

However, this past week God taught me an important lesson — to have a more acute awareness of the conversations, circumstances and people that pull me into a mindset where I’m focusing on the flesh instead of the spirit side of me.

It is a temptation for me to dive into the whys of my life hoping that understanding will spawn a change for the parts of me I don’t like. The first step of change is knowing what needs changing. And to understand what needs changing we need to know the source of the problem. However, what I learned is summed up in Philippians 3:13 “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,”

In Christ we are a new creation. It is an incredible gift because, we have a new spirit connected to God that breathes new life into our bodies. Romans 8:11 We no longer strive to live by our flesh or self-will (those things which are behind) but by God’s will (those things that are ahead). Children of God desire God and His ways, but there’s a part of us that pops up unwanted and unexpectedly driving us against God’s will instead of along side. This part of us that is contrary to God’s truth and wisdom is referred to as the old man, old nature, carnal nature, flesh, self-will, and carnal mind. Though we have God’s spirit dwelling within us, remnants (sometimes huge chunks) of our carnal nature remain as long as we live in these flesh bodies. Once we are born of God, we get a bad case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, because our self-will co-exists with His will in us.

This duality creates an internal conflict in our souls. It is the pressing affliction of a believer. We want to do one thing but we do another. What I don’t like about myself stems from this flesh-life. Paul talks about this internal conflict in Romans 7 -8. He doesn’t say to try to tame, repair, or fix it. Instead we are to reckon ourselves dead to it and alive in Christ. Romans 6:11 In other words, we need to focus on our spirit that is of God. We need to push forward mentally in our spirit life. What we focus on grows. At any one time we are either focused on the flesh or the spirit. And focusing on the flesh (our will and wisdom) breeds death and focusing on the spirit (God’s will and wisdom) brings life. Romans 8:6

What I learned this past week – was how easily this flesh focus can slip in and I need to have a deeper awareness of those things (conversations, circumstances, and people) that pull me into that carnal mindset. This carnal part of us is corrupt and always will be. It has a focus contrary to God’s ways and wisdom. I don’t need to waste my time talking or thinking about it because I can’t fix, repair or tame it anyway. I’ve learned that it is what it is – so why dwell on it? God has set me free from it – so why live in bondage by focusing on it? He has given me a new life to focus on and seek understanding in.

Because of this duality of flesh and spirit, at any one moment we are either operating in the flesh or in the spirit. Which one is dominating affects everything; how we think, speak, act and feel. When we operate with a flesh mind we are fearful, overwhelmed, frustrated, discouraged, hopeless, depressed, jealous, judgmental, critical, and selfish. Our trust has shifted from God to ourselves. We aren’t living in God’s truth and promises that He is our provider, protector, defender, comfort, rest, freedom, peace, power, and life.

As I draw close to God, discerning when I’m in the flesh verses the spirit is becoming clearer. In the flesh, I feel burdened, frustrated, discouraged. I become self-focused, withdrawn and ineffective in my life. Those emotions are flags that my focus is on the flesh and it is time to pray asking God to pull me out of my mind trap. It can be difficult when I give into the carnal mind to get out of it. When I try on my own I run in circles, but when I cry out to God He always brings me out.

Our focus is to be on the spirit and building it up in our lives which we do by stirring the deep. Stirring the deep (spending one-on-one time building intimacy with God through His Word) nourishes our spirits enabling us to live from the spirit and not the flesh. It empowers our spirit and that is one of many reasons we need to dive into the Word daily. And we have to look out for those traps that ensnare us to focusing on the flesh. We need to be aware of those triggers, times, circumstances or people that tempt us to be in flesh-minded because they can pull us down to a carnal mind of fear, bondage, and pride. We need to flood our minds with God’s truth so that in those moments we have given ourselves a choice through awareness of whose voice we are going to listen to. Ephesians 4: 22-24

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