God Is Inevitable

There is an inevitability to God that is terrifying. 

When a soul finally comes to terms with the full-force of the fact that God is both Creator of all things and Sustainer of all things, surely it cries out like David, “Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence?” And the answer to that cry is, “Nowhere.” We are intrinsically bound to Him, for better or for worse, not only because He is Creator and Sustainer, but also simply because the ontological purpose of our creation is to reflect His image. 

The ontology of humanity is God-ward. Despite our obstinate efforts and reasoning to have an existence that is mankind-ward or self-ward, no matter what direction we run from God, the end of our path will always be Him. As creatures made in the image of God, we can have no other destiny or purpose. A volcano cannot decide to be a dog, nor dog decide to be a volcano. We either embrace what we were created for or we reject it— God has given us no terms of compromise. 

As I sought the Lord in prayer this morning, asking about current world events and what is to come for us, He said, “We present no terms to the enemy. There are no terms to be presented, only the will of God to be carried out.” And as I contemplated His answer, I realized that what He said applies to us all. The enemy of God is not Russia, or our political or religious adversaries, or whomever we perceive as our worldly enemy. The enemy of God is anyone who rejects Jesus Christ. And the day will come when all those who have rejected Who and what they were created for, will realize that there is no bargaining with God…

… there is only His trustworthy and perfectly just will to be carried out. It is inevitable. 

(Matt 12:30) He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

(Ps 139:7,8) Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, behold, you are there.

(Ezekiel 24:14) “I, the LORD, have spoken…It shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not hold back, Nor will I spare, Nor will I relent; According to your ways And according to your deeds you will be judged,” Says the Lord GOD.

(Isaiah 46:9,10) Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me. I declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish.'

You Need Knowing

“You do not need weapons if you have knowing.”

That is what the Lord shared with me this morning. He said most people pray for knowledge, but what we should be praying for is knowing. He said there is a difference between knowledge and knowing. Knowledge is of the flesh, it satisfies our ego, and often times we pray for it not realizing that part of our motive is for self-satisfaction. We pray for knowledge for our own glory. 

You can have knowledge without understanding. That is what we see in most of the world— a humanity with much knowledge but no understanding. That is why we destroy ourselves, our children, and God’s creation. We have much knowledge but we are abysmally ignorant. But knowing is different. Knowing is knowledge with understanding. We pray for knowing for Christ’s glory. 

Knowledge is an outer thing that uses weapons in an insatiable advance of itself, but knowing is self-sustaining and reaches right into the heart of a man, conquering him without firing a shot. The Lord has made us a new humanity, and because of what we are, our weapons are not of the flesh, but of His Spirit. We fight not with knowledge, but with knowing. And there is only one source in all of creation from which to acquire knowing, which is why those who are in Christ will always have the upper hand against the enemy of God who may have much knowledge, but is eternally cut off from all understanding. 

Oh Lord, we pray for knowing. Because knowledge may win battles, but it will be knowing that wins the war. 

(2 Cor 10:3-5) For though we live in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh. The weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of the world. Instead, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

(Eph 6:12,13) For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand firm. 

(Prov 4:6,7) Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will guard you. Wisdom is supreme; so acquire wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.

The Needed Portion

Often times, we come to the Lord seeking a portion, but we do not receive the portion we expect. 

Many mornings I will sit at His feet, with expectant desire for a certain answer or encounter. I will go to the Lord in prayer, looking for answers or comfort. I will have an idea in my heart about what I need, I will have a picture in my mind of what I desire and what the fulfillment of that desire ought to look like. But there are so many times that the Lord does not perform the way I expected. 

No one knows how to meet our need better than the Lord. And I have found that more often than not, His way is far better than what I expect. We ask of the Lord based on our reason, but He answers us based on His understanding. I reach out for a crust of bread, and He hands me back seeds and a shovel. I ask for rain, and He gives me drought to make the roots reach deeper into the soil. 

The Lord answers our prayers, but He answers them in a way that will mature us into sons. A child reaches for a crust of bread and receives bread from their loving father, but that same loving father teaches a son how to grow enough bread to feed multitudes. Tender shoots may require regular rain to establish themselves, but deep roots are required for a mighty oak that cannot fall. And deep roots require times of drought. 

Thank you blessed Lord for not always giving us the portion we expect, yet always the one perfectly needed. 

(Luke 10:41,42) “Martha, Martha,” the Lord replied, “you are worried and upset about many things. But only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, and it will not be taken away from her.”

(Gal 3:29-4:4) And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise. What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he is the owner of everything. He is subject to guardians and trustees until the date set by his father… But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.

(1 Cor 13:9-12) For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Watching Over His Word

 

“One of the many differences between holy angels and mankind, is that holy angels have absolute trust in God’s character and sovereignty.”

That was the word that the Spirit shared with me as I contemplated all the intimate things that go on behind closed doors in the house of the Lord. Intimate moments that transpire between human souls and their Maker. Moments that will only and ever be known by those who are beloved by their Beloved. Moments of clarity, moments of refreshing, moments of revelation— moments that simply cannot be expressed in human words, so they remain moments suspended, like a bridge, between the mind of God and the sanctified soul. Moments when God is at work, undetected by most, in our midst. 

Even though the mountains may crumble into the sea, I am not afraid, because the One Who is working will continue to work until He accomplishes all He has envisioned in us (John 5:17; Phil 1:6;2:13). The mind of the Lord will be carried out among His called and chosen and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it. The Lord will have His broad plain, regardless of how many mountains try to rise up across the landscape. Because the Lord is “watching over His word to accomplish it” (Jer 1:12). 

I don’t need to know how all the puzzle pieces fit together, because I know that the Lord is watching over His word to accomplish it. I don’t need to know what prophecy will look like when it’s actually carried out, because I know that the Lord is watching over His word to accomplish it. There are many things I don’t need to know, because all I really need to know is that I can trust the Lord to watch over His word and accomplish it. 

May we not be so very different from the holy angels, as we all put our absolute trust in God’s character and sovereignty.

(Is 40:3-5) A voice of one calling: “Prepare the way for the LORD in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rugged land a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

(Ps 46:1-3) God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth is transformed and the mountains are toppled into the depths of the seas, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.

(Jer 1:11,12) And the word of the LORD came to me, asking, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” “I see a branch of an almond tree,” I replied. “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.”

Which Is Greater?

One gives generously, one labors strenuously, one prays faithfully— which one does the greater work?

The one who labors strenuously, implores the Lord of heaven to provide the means to carry out the work he’s been called to. The Lord answers that call through the one who gives generously, making it possible for the one who labors to labor. The one who prays faithfully, asks the Lord to cover them both with protection and to continue to inspire them both unto obedience. Which one does the greater work? 

Without prayer, neither the laborer nor giver would be moved to respond to the Spirit (Luke 10:2). Without the laborer, there would be no fruit harvested. Without the giver, the laborer would have no means to provide for His own family or the Lord’s. The praying one prays for the felt needs and spiritual needs of others to be met. The laborer carries out the practical outworking of that prayer. The giver makes the practical outworking possible. Which one does the greater work?

My body has hands that work, eyes that discern, and a heart that feels. How can I work without accurate discernment? How can I discern void of emotion?  What good is emotion without hands to carry out what my heart compels or my eyes discern? Which one of these does the greater work? All three are called to a great work. All three are equally needed… 

… because there are no side characters in God’s kingdom. 

(1 Cor 12:18-21) But in fact, God has arranged the members of the body, every one of them, according to His design. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you.” Nor can the head say to the feet, “I do not need you.”

(John 21:20-22) Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them… When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain until I return, what is that to you? You follow Me!”

(1 Cor 3:5-7) What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted, Apollos watered, but God kept it growing. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

No Side Characters

“I guess I’m just going to be a side-character…”

I read these words written in a student’s journal entry yesterday. This child was expressing their frustration and despondency about feeling ignored, cast aside, and un-included, and it touched my heart deeply. Few among us can truly say they have never felt the sting of rejection, or the longing to be included and accepted among brethren. It is a painful, universal struggle all of us experience to some degree or another. 

During my prayer time yesterday, the Spirit brought to mind Jesus multiplying the fishes and loaves. He pointed out that there was no shortage of religious “food” being shared in the land of Israel at the time, but the only food that could truly satisfy the people, passed through the Lord’s hands by way of a child. Jesus took the meager portion of a child and multiplied it to satisfy the longings of thousands. So today, as I share my response to my student, I share a child’s portion that perhaps the Lord will multiply to fill the spiritual hunger of multitudes:

…”There are no side-characters in God’s kingdom… there’s just a whole lot of people trying to figure out their fit and purpose. Some are just louder than others. Some are more awkward than others. Some develop more slowly, some mature more quickly. So many souls, going in so many directions, with so many perspectives and notions of what God wants from them, or how He wants us to be. But Jesus already gave us the answer to all of that…

He said ‘Follow Me…’ and ‘Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another’ (John 13:34; 21:21,22)”…

(John 6:9,11; Matt 15:37) “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but what difference will these make among so many?”…Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted…They all ate and were satisfied…

(1 Cor 12:24,25) …But God has composed the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its members should have mutual concern for one another.

(Rom 12:3-5) Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

Resting In His Plan

I asked my daughter to sweep.  

I gave her a job to do, and the first thing she wanted to know, was if I had asked her sister to do a chore too. I told her not to worry about her sister, to just focus on what I had asked her to do. Then she asked, “Momma, how much do I have to sweep?” And before I could answer, she asked, “Do I just have to sweep the dining room, or the kitchen too?….What about the hallway?” She wanted to know my plans. She wanted to know exactly what I had in mind. And in that moment, I saw so much of myself in my own child. 

I thought about all the times I’d been like that with God. All the times I’d been more worried about what other people were doing, rather than focusing on what the Lord had asked me to do. All the times I wanted to know exactly what His plans were, because I wanted to be given  answers more than I wanted to grow in faith. “Why, Lord?”… “When, Lord?”… “What next, Lord?” 

I’ve asked all those anxious questions. At times, I even ran around in circles trying to answer them. Because just like my daughter, I wanted to know what to expect. I wanted to know the plan. But when I gave my daughter a job, all she really needed to know, was that there was a plan… and she was part of it… and I would be faithful to lead her through it… step by step…

… and that’s really all we need to know, too. 

(Ps 40:4,5) Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods. Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders You have done, and the plans You have for us—none can compare to You—if I proclaim and declare them, they are more than I can count.

(Prov 3:5-7) Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil.

(Rom 8:27,28) And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose.