The messages of this world and religion have made life with God somehow less, which is a lie. It’s this lie that must be exposed in our soul to enable us come into the fullness of God’s righteous love. As long as we are holding this lie, we won’t let go and embrace all He has for us. We will continue to make decisions against His leading and thus repeat the dynamic of what happened in the Garden of Eden over and over … that somehow we know better.
Luke 18:17 “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”
One central aspect to being a child of God who enters into the Kingdom of God is trust; a trust that leads to a rest in your soul because you know your Father is working ALL out perfectly. Psalm 57:2, Hebrews 4:11 In a restful state there is no worry, angst, fear, anxiety, or any other emotion that takes you away from abiding in peace.
Matthew 7:11 “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Growing up, I was blessed to never go hungry. Usually each night my mom prepared a balanced healthy dinner. I never wondered about dinner; if there would be any, how or where we would have it, how it was being cooked, or if it would be nutritious to help me to grow healthy and strong. I trusted in my parents to provide as they saw best and never gave it a second thought after all they were my parents. Matthew 6:8
Imagine if I trusted myself. After a day of playing, I would scour the neighborhood anxiously looking for a piece of bread. This lack of trust is what most do when it comes to God. They are like children scouring the neighborhood thinking God doesn’t care, He isn’t there, or they’re supposed to get their own dinner. It isn’t meant to be this way …
In ALL things we are to act in faith. Romans 14:23 This means trusting God and not ourselves, someone else, how we do something, or what we do. It means we trust God as the giver of all good things. James 1:17 We trust in His ability to work in and through us. We trust Him to provide in a faultless way because of His pure love. This type of trust is child-like faith. We don’t know how dinner will come, but we know we can trust God to provide it every time and it will be perfect because He IS our Father.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;
Peaceful, Honoring Prayer
This perspective is a fundamental aspect of prayer. In prayer, we give our situation over to God to work it out perfectly; Thy will be done. We let it go. We don’t judge how He is working it out. This honors God as God our Father. As God’s children, when we ask for His help we trust that He IS working it out. Sometimes it will be what we expected, more often times not. But we trust God will do what is flawless. Hindsight shows His perfection. God takes away a job, but puts us somewhere better. God removes us from a relationship, only to realize it was unhealthy. We experience the consequence of our sin, but we learn to walk in His wisdom, not our own. When we ask for His help, He gives us the fulfillment of our true desires, not what we think we need in our extremely limited understanding.
We think we know what is best and good; we don’t, only God does. Mark 10:18 We have to trust His goodness and not what we see because of how differently He might lead us in the fulfillment of our true desires. 1 Corin 2:5 If we trust Him, He will fulfill and exceed all we need in the perfect way and timing.
Psalm 34:10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.
Let go of your expectations. Leave each step up to God. Trust He is working because He said He is to those who seek Him. Hebrews 13:21 Seek to walk according to His will and wisdom and not your own. James 1:1-8 This is the rest we are to have in every area of our lives.
In trust, we know whatever is happening God is in each detail bringing about what we need. Any one night, dinner may have come through my mom’s cooking, going out to eat, going to a friend’s house, or picking up dinner to bring home. I trusted them with the how and what. Do the same with God … leave the details up to Him. He loves you more than the perfect parent. Most don’t trust, so they go their own way to their detriment. God knows best. And when we trust, we are amenable to seek and follow His ways as He leads. If we expect our Mom’s meatloaf to be ready at 6PM, when it doesn’t come we’ll think she forgot about us. Meanwhile, she was waiting in the car to take us to our favorite restaurant. Leave it all to God. Follow where HE leads. He works outside of our understanding and for our best.
Want to trust God to this extent? Get to know Him. Spend time with Him one-on-one, each day seeking His face in spirit and truth. Most don’t trust because they don’t know truly know God or His love, get to know Him and you’ll know His love, then true trust will follow.
In this brief video, I share some important concepts that help us to enter into God’s rest as He tells us to …
Hebrews 4:11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
Ephesians 1:19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power
As we buy and sell with God, which moves us to living by faith in Him in ALL things, we experience the manifestation of God in our lives …
For years, I’ve been buying and selling with God and as a result gaining deep rest and power in my life. One specific area I want to share with you (because it’s often overlooked for the death trap it is), is in the area of s l o w i n g down in life.
In my life a part of the old things was functioning as a Grand Master Taskmaster. I lived by lists, schedules and managing my time efficiently because I got a lot done (in my estimation) and felt internally & externally rewarded for it. Sure my body was tense and my life stripped of the rest, peace and enjoyment that could have been, but I was blind to all that. I didn’t realize there was truly a better way.
I would rush here and there … rush to relax. Letting the world govern what “needed” to be done, I was a slave to its demands that became my demands upon myself and my life. So who was I really serving? To accomplish all I “needed” to, I had to be efficient, highly productive and that meant being the ultimate taskmaster. But as I continued to buy and sell with God and gain faith in Him in all areas, this aspect of my life had to be purged for it was the world’s way of living, not His, thus a sin that manifested death in my life.
As a previous Master Taskmaster, this transformation was no small habitual rut to change because this mentality was deeply imbedded in me affecting most areas of my life in some form. When God first opened my eyes to this area, it seemed like a small issue, but as He showed me the ripple affect, the impact was vast and deadly. Obedience in the small things matters a great deal, because in reality what we may judge small isn’t when it plays out. If a plane is off course a few degrees from its desired endpoint, after miles of travel it ends up hundreds of miles from its destination. This was happening to me. The more I strived the further I got away from the abundant life God wanted to give me. Being in that state was the opposite of trusting Him.
In my alone time with God, He showed me how my spirit needs to remain in that same state that I am with Him in the morning; peaceful, trusting, connected and at rest so He could move through me as He willed. If I wasn’t at rest, I wasn’t in His will. The rushing around, as I use to do to fit in all my plans and lists, put me in a mindset of being focused on my effort instead of His. It’s a state where it’s difficult to hear Him, thus follow His lead. Did Jesus ever rush around? No, when you are walking in the power of God, you don’t need to.
As God showed me how my spirit needed to be in a calm state, I started to slow down, literally. On the flip side that meant I needed to trust Him with all that “needed” to be done. When I started to rush, in faith I stopped and functioned according to His power. As I did it His way, He rewarded my faith. Not only did I get done what was truly needed, but I was in a peaceful and enjoyable state the entire time, I more deeply engage others instead of rushing off to the next task, and I was more productive and had more downtime because I trusted in His power moving through me and not my efforts. …. But as you abound in everything–in faith 2 Corin 8:7
As I was faithful in one area God moved me to the next; to forfeit my extensive planning and lists and trust His guidance. Being encouraged by the result of His previous counsel, I had the faith for this next step, again buying and selling with God. I stopped with all the lists. Again, He blessed my activities and time, and I accomplished more of what was important. Again, it seemed like a small thing, but I learned I was being driven by my will instead of His, which is HUGE.
A hurried and frazzled lifestyle, accepted as normal and even necessary in today’s world, is contrary to abiding in God’s rest, which is a central aspect of a believers life. God is Lord of our lives, not us. For this to be the case, we have to be in a state of trust which leads to a literal mindset of rest. It’s a state where we forsake our effort and let Him move through us as He wills in His power. In this state, God governs our thoughts desires, words and actions, which are paramount to living a life of faith in Him and having Him manifest Himself in our lives.
Hebrews 4:11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience
Instead of being hurried and frazzled, I’m now dazzled by the perfection of His counsel and how His power moves through us when we trust Him and do it His way. When we do everything in faith (trusting in Him to performs all things for us and in His ways of working) then we find a life we’ve yearned for, we enter into His rest as He calls us to, and our lives glorify Him and His power.
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.
Revelation 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
A middle aged man wakes each morning scanning the Wall Street Journal while he enjoys his caffeine charge. On the train to work, he pours over his latest business magazine, one of many, soaking in the new trends seeking to be the best leader he can be. He’s proficient in implementing what he has learned and is seeing some results; though not enough for the advancement he wants, so he pushes on. After putting in extra hours at the office in hopes to earn a promotion (adding to his responsibility, time at the office, and stress) he heads home and gives the leftover energy and time to his family. He works hard and makes extensive sacrifices for the sake of his family. The next day the hamster wheel begins again. As the years close upon him, he battles between pushing harder and growing apathy as the youthful competition is at his heels. On the weekend, he goes to a conference in his industry in hopes of gaining insight on how to obtain his goals; the ultimate goal being to rest, enjoy his accomplishments and relax. But for now, the sacrifices must be made; it’s just the way it is, or is it?
Another middle aged man wakes each morning and spends time in communion with God as he enjoys his cup of steaming coffee with cream and sugar. He seeks for wisdom and prays for his employees. He receives specific counsel and instruction on pending business issues. He heads out to the office enjoying a relaxing drive after rush hour. He handles problems with astuteness, formulates creative business solutions with ease and proficiency. Because he trusts that God is in control and the provider, an atmosphere of joy, true care for the employees, and rest permeates the office. After a productive day, he heads home at 4PM before the traffic and enjoys an engaging evening with his family. On the weekend, he enjoys doing what he wants and continuing to abide in peace and rest.
Faith is acting on a concept or idea because we believe it will fulfill a hope. One man had faith in the wisdom of “successful” business practices of his effort, the other in God’s wisdom and His work.
Faith is increased in an idea by “buying and selling”. This exchange is how we manifest “our truth”.
We “buy and sell” when we learn a concept, then mix our belief with it (faith), then act on it and see the results thus gaining more faith than we started with (selling). The process continues, back and forth. One man learned a business concept (put in more hours at the office), believed it would help him reach his goals, and acted on it. If you receive (buy) the concept that working 12 hours a day will advance you in your career, then you mix your belief with that concept, and act on it and see results and continue in that direction, you are “buying and selling” that concept. When you see some results, your faith grows that you are on the right path even though your end goal hasn’t been accomplished. Thus, your faith is established and increased in that concept.
We can “buy and sell”, or establish faith, with one of two kingdoms, which I mentioned in a previous post. One kingdom and all its ways are of God, and the other is counter to God. Thus, when we are buying from one, we can’t buy from the other.
Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
When we buy from one kingdom, we sell back to the same kingdom with our actions thus we serve that kingdom because we serve its wisdom and ways. Which kingdom we have cultivated a relationship with, or “buy and sell” with, is the one we have faith in, thus serve and bear the mark or name of. Revelation 13:17, Deuteronomy 30:19
We glorify and worship with our lives the kingdom we “buy and sell” with. The first man chose the kingdom of worldly wisdom, thus serving its ways and king. 1 John 5:19 John 8:44 The second man chose the kingdom of God’s wisdom, thus serving its ways and King.
In Revelation, Christ Jesus tells us to buy gold refined in the fire from Him. Revelation 3:18 He is instructing us to “buy and sell” faith in Him. Gold is our faith. 1 Peter 1:7 The refinement in the fire is the purifying of that faith that occurs as we continue to “buy and sell” and increase our faith through acting on His ways and truths in our lives.
Here is how it works. We learn a concept from the Holy Spirit. With our current level of faith, we act on that concept; we see the positive results and our faith is increased. As we continue this back and forth exchange, faith in God and His ways grows in our lives and our lives bear the fruit of it: peace, rest, joy, satisfaction, purpose, and unchanging value.
We “buy and sell” from one of the two kingdoms in all areas of our lives; health, relationships, work, hobbies, purpose, value, etc. Our lives will reflect which kingdom we’ve been fostering faith in and much more as the Day of the Lord dawns.
Which kingdom are you buying and selling with? Are you buying gold, which has been refined in the fire, from Christ? Do you experience the riches from having that precious gold? Or are you a serving the one that will never deliver what you truly seek but manipulates your hope to keep you holding on? Only an investment in the Kingdom of God will return to you what you ultimately seek.
Psalm 57:2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.
Being a disciple of Christ, the Truth, is fundamental and essential to life in Him and becoming the temple of God …
John 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
Eternal life is knowing God … what this means for our journey on this earth.
Looking at a bigger picture of the gospel of Christ.
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
Matthew 6:34 “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble”
An important lesson we learn as the kingdom of heaven, God’s Spirit, grows within us is to be present-minded. Being present-minded is not living in the past that is done and gone or the unknown future of our imagination. It’s not holding onto the negative situations and people of the past and it isn’t worrying about those in the future. It’s a state of mind of being in the present moment and trusting ALL to God, the Faithful Shepherd. It’s knowing He is at perfect work in our lives performing ALL things for us. Psalm 57:2
With the past gone and the future unknown, the only part of our existence that is real is right now. If we let God work and embrace what He is doing NOW by not holding onto a dead past or dwelling in an unknown future, the fruit of the present will be of God’s power and presence.
This present-mindedness is what God calls us to. He tells us forget the past. It’s gone. He tells us not to worry about the future. It’s in His hands. He cares for us as the perfect Father. If we put our trust in Him, He will not let us down. If we are truly seeking His truth and will, we can trust His spirit is guiding us. Our circumstances may not work out as we expected, but they will work out for our best and the best for others. Even for the difficult seasons, hindsight reveals the perfection of God’s ways and timing. Our spirits are in His faithful care.
Importance of Trust and Rest
Our path to present-mindedness is one of rest and faithfully doing what He has called us to today. We are to trust in His power to work in and through us in ALL circumstances. This state of mind is a central aspect of resting in God as He calls us to; a rest that comes from trusting in God to be God in our lives. Hebrews 4:10-11
Once we are God’s, our lives are no longer our own. We belong to God. What better One to be in charge of our lives than God? 1 Corin 6:20 With God in control, we never know what the next minute will bring. His ways aren’t our ways. It’s a waste of energy and time trying to figure everything out and why our expectations failed – they were our plans and not God’s. They weren’t the best for us; we have to let them go. We can mistakenly misread our plans that didn’t work out as we expected to be God not working or not caring. Neither is true. He performs all things for us and cares more than we can understand – that is why life isn’t going as we want at the time. Therefore, each day we rely on His perfect care as He determines. Instead of trying to control and worry, we rest and trust. This is the obedience God calls us to. This state of peace is His desire for us.
Commit your ways to the Lord and He will establish your paths. When you understand your limitations to discern what is truly good and best, you will rejoice in not being in control and God determining your steps.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding
Psalm 34:4-5 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
How Do I Gain Present-Mindedness?
Have you tried to be present-minded? It sounds good letting go of the unknown future and our screws ups and pains of the past, but is it realistic?
Being present-minded requires trust. Trust comes from intimately knowing God. Psalm 9:10 This element is something we can affect because God wants us to know Him. Our knowing of God grows as we spend time in the Bible being taught by the Holy Spirit. As we seek God in our daily experiences; seeking His wisdom, instruction and counsel, our understanding grows. As we seek to know Him through His creation, our knowledge of His ways deepens. In time, we come to intimately know God as He desires us to. We come to know God as the perfect Father and thus become the trusting child.
As we continue the life long practice of each morning renewing our minds in THE Truth and spending time drawing near to God, trust and rest are the fruit and present-mindedness follows. In His presence, He frees us from our past, binds up our wounds and we carry only the lessons forward. We let go of trying to control as we realize it is an illusion that binds us and keeps His power from flowing through our lives.
Rely on God’s strength for what He has called you to do today, and leave tomorrow to itself. Have no confidence in the flesh; your abilities to accomplish all you desire. Hope in God’s mercy that reaches to the heavens. Psalm 57:10 Wait on Him. His timing and methods are perfect, you can trust them. Act faithfully as He leads, not second guessing, doubting and complaining – for it is only against God you complain. Feed on His faithfulness. Faithfully do what He has called you to do today and leave the results and expectations up to Him. Psalm 62:5
Living Light 