River into Words

When God says: ASK

… simply put, ASK.

ASK boldly, importunately, continually … ASK faithfully.

ASK solely based on Who God IS.

One of the lovely things I experience in God and thoroughly enjoy about Him is Him telling me to ask … then He tells me what to ask … then He asks for me (enables me to ask) … after which I experientially have it. Every part of this experience blesses me greatly.

I particularly love the part where He tells me what to ask – Him giving me the words to say! I usually don’t realize it until after-the-fact.

When I catch up to it happening, I’m always delightfully amazed at how personally involved God is in my life.

More and more, I experience Him tenderly caring for me … the zeal of His love is breath-taking!

It is with everlasting love that I AM tenderly caring for you.

Isaiah 54:8B

We see God express His passionate love when He tells us to ASK. Him telling us to ASK is Him saying: Let ME love you, that’s at least how I’ve come to experience it!

Below are few things to consider in relation and response to God saying “ASK”. I excitedly hope they strengthen your resolve to ask unreservedly!

God’s divine power has made available to us absolutely everything necessary for LIFE and godliness …

2 Peter 1:3A

In other words, God wants to fully-fill us. He wants to fully and overflowingly satisfy us –Psalm 103:5. He wants to LOVE us.

… Ask and keep on asking … so that your joy may be full, complete, without limits, like a river overflowing its banks!

John 16:24B

His encouraging nudge to ask Him is absolutely nothing like how some would rather we beg before they give … far from it in relation to God!

He has already given us all we need – 2 Peter 1:3A. Evidently, “beg Me to give you what I’ve already given you” is most definitely NOT what God is saying or what He is going for when He says “Ask”.

By way of His Sovereign choice, we have (experience and enjoy) some of the already-God-given blessings without asking i.e. oxygen! With the others, He tells us to ASK so He can fully-fill and fulfill us as He excitedly desires to.

Asking God is an expression and a declaration of Faith. At the very least, it inherently involves believing that God exists and that He IS able to give what we are about to ask Him – this is FAITH … the one thing we know definitely pleases God.

What a wonderful privilege it is to touch and thrill God’s heart! 💖

Without Faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever comes to God must necessarily (first) believe that God exists … that He rewards (and cares enough to respond to) those who seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6

Considering that we were created for His pleasure, it is appropriate to say then that asking God is one of the ways we are fulfilled:

(A) by way of living our design – pleasing God.

(B) by being fully filled with JOY!

God is El Shaddai – Giver of Himself, The Pourer-Forth …

When we ask, in a sense, we present Him with containers to pour into.

Inversely, when we don’t ask we don’t present Him with containers to pour into … we don’t let Him be God. While we may not mean to, what we tell God by not asking is: Don’t be God. This at best is rude … at worst, it is anti-God! SeLaH

Thankfully, God can NOT not be God.

… God remains true – faithful to His Word and His righteous character. He can NOT deny Who He IS … there’s no way He can be false to Himself.

2 Timothy 2:13B (AMPC, NLT, MSG)

Any contrary implication or suggestion is an outright affront to His Person – this displeases God. We see this in Matthew 25:14-30… the Parable of the Talents.

For a long time and until Dec 2020, this parable eluded confused me! Excluding the part where the third servant said his Master was harsh and hard, I couldn’t see what else he did wrong and didn’t understand why the Master (God) thwacked him the way He did.

For those who are not familiar with the story, here’s a quick run down:

A wealthy man (the Master) was going on an extended trip. Before He left, He gave three servants talents (money) … He gave to each according to his personal ability – the first got 5 talents, the second got 2 talents, and the third got one talent.

While the Master was away, the first and second servants each doubled what they were given. The third servant dug a hole in the ground and carefully buried his Master’s money.

When the Master got back, the first two servants gave account of how they each doubled His investment. He was very pleased with both of them. In response, He shares His joy with them.

Then came the third servant with his account … he said:

“knowing you’re a harsh and hard man, reaping where you did not sow … I was afraid to lose the talent, so I hid it in the ground. Here it is, have what is yours”

The Master was furious, He responded saying:

“you wicked and slothful servant! If truly I reap where I haven’t sowed, … you ought to have invested My money with the bankers, where at least I would have received what was My own with interest.“

The Master had the talent taken from the third servant and had him thrown into outer darkness.

………………………….

So there I was, interacting with God (the Word of God) … and Revelation 3:11 came up:

” … I’m on My way, I’ll be there soon. Hold tight to what you have, that no one may take your crown.”

I thought to myself saying:

aha! isn’t that what the third servant did.He held tight to what he was given!why then was he thwacked.

I left the thought where I had previously put it, on the this-one-still-confuses-me shelf, and I moved on with my interaction with God.

Shortly after, the HolySpirit responded saying:

God is The Gift that gives gifts that keep on giving.

It was in that very moment that I saw it! Oh I saw it!

I saw God’s unrelenting and sheer determinedness to be WHO HE IS ALWAYS – to be Faithful! To be Godful! To be God. There is no shadow of turning in Him and He won’t allow any misrepresentation of WHO HE IS – El Shaddai, Giver of life and every good gift. He will NEVER not be God – the Giver of gifts that give.

By not letting his talent give, the third servant’s action was anti-God. It was in direct opposition to WHO GOD IS – Giver.

God gives of Himself and because He is giving (by nature), what He gives invariably gives … what He gives MUST give. We see this in 2 Corinthians 9:10-11…

This generous God Who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is even more extravagant toward you.

First He supplies every need, plus more. Then He multiplies the seed as you sow (give) it, so that the harvest of your generosity (giving) will grow (give).

2 Corinthians 9:10-11 (TPT, MSG)

I took away a number of things from this interaction. One being that the HolySpirit is super cool! 🥰 … Another, which is more to the next point I’m trying to make, is that it behooves me to let God BE, to let God GIVE. Letting God give glorifies Him – one way to do this is by asking God.

In asking God, we make room for Him to be expressed (glorified). In His giving or better put in our experience of having what He has already given …

  • God is expressed to us … He is glorified through the experience.
  • FULL of JOY, we inevitably praise Him – we express Who God IS. Thus, God is glorified through us.

I Myself will grant whatever you ask in My Name – as representing all that I AM, so that the Father may be glorified and celebrated in (through) the Son.

John 14:13

… one more for the road. I saved the best for the last! #TheHiddenTreasure 🥰

Imagine if we experientially had all the already-God-given blessings without ever asking. Beyond the lack of appreciation for what we have … resulting from a dwindling to zero sense of need, we would not know The One Who gave them.

Our experience will be limited to what was given BUT will not include the knowledge that it was given or the knowledge of The Giver. What a tragedy!

An existence void of the knowledge of God – REAL, ABUNDANT LIFE!

Knowing God is the BEST and GREATEST blessing He has given to us!

He wants us to know and have Him (ETERNAL LIFE). One of the ways through which He has designed for us to have this is by asking Him.

Asking involves active participation and personal involvement – a key aspect of knowing God. I wholeheartedly believe that this is the ultimate reason and beautiful treasure hidden in God’s encouragement to ask – that we may increasingly know, experience, and enjoy Him personally.

Hence the category of already-God-given blessings that we experience only through the personal knowledge of God – 2 Peter 1:3B

God’s divine power has made available to us absolutely everything necessary forLIFE and godliness, through the full and personal knowledge of Him Who called us by and to His own glory and excellence.

2 Peter 1:3

As part of each Ask-and-Receive experience, our knowledge of God is increasingly reinforced. In turn, we are FULL of JOY, of FAITH, of GOD!

With this understanding, John 16:24B can be translated as:

ASK … keep asking so that you may know God, for in knowing Him your JOY will inevitably be FULL and overflowing.

Explicitly put …

… ASK so that your joy may be FULL (1) by way of having what you asked for which was made ready and given well before you knew to ask, and (2) even MORE so because of your reinforced and increased knowledge of God – the glory of God that was revealed (gifted) to you and thus shines through you!

It’s a win-win-win-win setup!

When we ask … we please God (win), our JOY is FULL to overflowing (win), we reinforcingly know God (win), God is glorified (win).

We have everything to gain and nothing to lose in asking God!

Sooooo … ask away! Ask faithfully.

ASK … NOT based on what we think we’ve done for Him lately.

ASK in a manner that is representative of Who God IS – His Word, His Name, LOVE.

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El Shaddai, You are MORE than I can dare, desire, or think to ask. You satisfy my mouth, my necessity, my desire … the greatest of which is YOU.

According to Your heart, fill me FULL of YOU. Hold nothing back.

Does God’s Word Apply To Me Too?

Do you find yourself reading the bible and wondering if God’s word of love to someone or regarding a group of people applies to you too? Are you tempted to dismiss it because you don’t see how it could apply to you?

My hope is that after reading this blog you’ll not only have a truth-based answer, you’ll also embrace every treasure of the word of God that you find … and that you will begin (or continue) to actively experience them. That in experience, the Word of God will be your perpetual delight!

In response to God’s outrageous words and expressions of love (Himself), we might find ourselves say, think, or feel …

“that was then … this is now, it might not apply now”

“that was for Jeremiah … or Mary, not me”

“it’s too good to be true, can it be real”

… well, let’s start with the first and we’ll make our way through the rest.

………………………………….

“That was THEN … this is NOW”.

Ehmmm … not exactly. THEN is NOW.

Explicitly put, The Word of God is THEN, NOW, and ALWAYS.

The Word of God is not limited to time. It goes beyond any timeline.

The Word that God speaks is living, active, full of power …

Hebrews 4:12

It is undiminished – no reduction in potency or efficacy. It is applicable very much so now as it was when God spoke it … It is everlasting!

The Word of God endures forever …

1 Peter 1:25

What He said THEN is NOW … ALWAYS NOW.

………………………………….

… I have loved you with an everlasting love …

Jeremiah 31:3

“Well, that was for Jeremiah … I’m not Jeremiah or at least not that Jeremiah.”

Those words of love to Jeremiah was for the people of Israel (Jeremiah included). Today, these exact words extend to whoever God has chosen to love … whoever believes (receives) God and His Love – Jesus is the Love of God.

God so greatly loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

The Word of God – His word of love – is no respecter of person(s).

Mercy is an expression of His love and this is what God says …

I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy on.

Romans 9:15

Something to keep in mind: having access to God’s word is mercy in and of itself. So is the revelation of His words by His Spirit – SeLaH.

God’s word of love is NOT limited to a person or people. It outlasts and extends beyond the people to whom it was directly spoken. God’s Love is everlasting!

God’s expression of love (then), to Jeremiah … to the people of Israel, is very much the same expression of His love (now) to everyone who believes (receives) Him.

………………………………….

“It’s too good to be true.”

I remember feeling this way when the HolySpirit opened up the Songs of Solomon (Song of Songs) to me … it felt so unreal yet it was undoubtedly real!

Yes, it is soooo very good … solely BECAUSE that is the very nature of God.

God is so very GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD

Psalm 100:5 (my translation 🙂)

God is good – He is goodness itself. As a result, His word of love is good.

Yes, it is beyond anything we’ve ever experienced before … and that’s BECAUSE we haven’t experienced it … at least not fully and completely.

Things never discovered or heard of before, things beyond our ability to imagine – these are the many (bottomless) things God keeps ready for those who love Him.

I Corinthians 2:9

Nothing we’ve seen, heard, or experienced remotely comes close …

… yet, it is ALL very true, very real. I dare say even more real and prevalent than the air we breathe … and it’s ours for the taking!

………………………………….

“but it says for those who love Him … I don’t know if I love Him so this might not apply to me”

There was a time when I was somewhat (significantly) convinced that I did not or must not love God. Back then, I would read Romans 8:28 and immediately my response (mostly in thought and/or feelings) would be:

“This very likely doesn’t apply to me … it says very clearly “those who love God” …”

… I tell you, those times were rough!

Thankfully, the HolySpirit has since made me receptive to the love of God that He continues to pour into my heart. He also taught me that believing God is loving God … He assured me that He enables (and will continue to enable) me to love God. An even deeper truth is that He loves God for me – God loves God for me! … another story for another day.

The take-away for now (and in today’s story blog 🙂) is that Believers of God are Lovers of God. IF you believe that God IS … and you believe in His ONLY begotten Son – Jesus, THEN you love God and His words of love fully apply to you.

………………………………….

In learning that I will always be the need for Who God IS. I also understood that ALL God IS apply to me. God is Love and His word. Hence, His words of love apply to me.

BUT don’t take my personal resolve for it, let’s take a look at Jesus’ narration of this truth. In Matthew 13:44, Jesus told a parable about the Kingdom of God.

The parable goes thus …

The kingdom of heaven is like a very precious treasure hidden in a field, which a man found.

The finder is ecstatic – what a find!

… he proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money to buy the field. He buys the entire field so he could have the treasure for himself.

Matthew 13:44

One very lucky orchestratedly blessed man this man!

He found the hidden treasure – the Kingdom of God. In essence, he found God.

The treasure was there … so is God – Jehovah Shammah (The LORD is there) 💖

The treasure was there … available for grabs! It was there for whoever found it. It could have been anyone … the treasure wasn’t there for any one/specific person.

So is the Word of God – His words of love are available for grabs to whoever will seek them out, thus find them, and then claim them as theirs … in other words, Finders Keepers.

The bible can be likened to that field in the parable – the field with hidden gems available to those who (like the man in the parable) go looking … those who seek.

The treasure was NOT lying on the ground – on the surface of this field. It was hidden, buried … to mean some digging (seeking) was involved. He sought and (according to the infallible, self-fulfilling Word of God) he found them!

… everyone who seeks finds …

Luke 10:11(NLT)

The good news is God wants to be found! He wants to be found by us …

When you come looking for Me, you’ll find Me … you will find Me when your search for Me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:13

WHY the hide and seek?

Apparently, God loves this game principle! I’m convinced that He invented it and that His version is called: Hide-Seek-Find … ecstatic JOY!

… and that’s (in part) WHY. The ecstatic JOY that comes with the find!

God is passionately and unyieldingly committed to filling us FULL to overflowing with JOY. The man in the parable experienced this JOY … a JOY that made him give up everything else for the treasure he found.

Another part of the WHY is the personal involvement or active participation on our end. God wants us to know and experience Him fully and personally, hence the invitation to seek Him.

Our personal experience of, and walk with, God is a priceless gem that no enemy can take away! It’s the greatest JOY there is and God wants us to have it.

It’s no wonder we see Him express this in many ways throughout the bible … Proverbs 2:4 is one of such verses that echo God’s heart regarding seeking Him (Wisdom) – the Word of God is Wisdom.

Search for it like a prospector panning for gold, like an adventurer on a treasure hunt … keep seeking it like a man would seek for sterling silver, searching in hidden places for cherished treasure

Proverbs 2:4

The bible has hidden in it precious treasures – God’s words of love, promise, wisdom, blessings, … and everything we need.

Finding these treasures is NOT happenstance, which is why I don’t think the man in the parable was lucky or that the find was a lucky find. We find these hidden treasures because God (by His Spirit) reveals them to us.

To us God has unveiled and revealed these profound realities … His innermost heart and deepest mysteries, through His Spirit Who searches the bottomless things of God – things hidden and beyond human scrutiny.

1 Corinthians 2:10

I don’t take these finds lightly … so far, each one has been to me an indication of what God wants to bring to live in my life – what He wants me to have, experience, and ultimately enjoy!

The next time you find a hidden treasure in the bible … It’s yours! Claim it!

Claim it with your version of the same tenacity that the man in the parable had.

Whatever your version may be, lay hold of and tightly to God’s words of love to you.

Hold on to loyal love and don’t let it go …

Proverbs 3:3A (TPT)

Don’t lose your grip on them … Let no one take them from you. Revelation 3:11

Let your response to God’s words of love, as revealed to you by the Holy Spirit, be Jesus. Jesus is God’s Yes … He is the Amen. Revelation 3:14. Let your response be Yes and Amen (it is so)!

For as many as are the promises of God, they are ALL answered Yes in Jesus. For this reason we also utter Amen to God through Jesus … as His Yes and our Amen ascend to God, we bring glory to God.

2 Corinthians 1:20 (AMPC, AMP, TPT)

PS: Seek, keep seeking … there is MORE. When you find it … it’s yours! It definitely applies you. Claim it (receive it) by actively and wholeheartedly believing it … and enjoy it with humility and thanksgiving.

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Thank You Abba for making available to us ALL things pertaining to life and godliness … thank You for Your words of love to me – I receive them, I claim them, they are mine according to Your heart and according to Your Yes … AMEN!

The Love Connection

The entirety of this blog is an attempt to call out the importance of God’s Love and why we most definitely need it.

Three things remain: Faith, Hope, Love – yetthe greatest of these is LOVE.

1 Corinthians 13:13

Recently, and somewhat casually, the HolySpirit said to me: Ask Abba to love you with all He’s got. It took me a minute to process what I had just been told … even the possibility of it made my brain pause! …

… what doesALLmean for a God Who is inexhaustible!

The anticipation of it made my heart skip several beats leap!

In obedience and with sheer excitement, I asked God to love me with ALL He’s got!

Full disclosure … I was almost certain I’d explode BUT I asked anyway because I was (still am) absolutely confident that the HolySpirit will put me back together again should it happen!

A quick side note: I have a growing suspicion that I’ve exploded many times over and that the HolySpirit keeps putting me back together! What can I say … God excites me! … and evidently, He enjoys it. 🙂

Back to the topic at hand …

… with the understanding that no one can take on ALL of God, the HolySpirit assured me that He’ll help me bear it. 🥰

In Ephesians 3, Paul prayed saying …

… that you may be strong, fully capable, and empowered to comprehend and take the experience of God’s love– the length, breadth, height, and depth of it!

Ephesians 3:17B-18

For a long time (until maybe last year), I read this wondering why I need Strength … why do I need to be empowered to know and experience the Love of God.

Truthfully, it takes God’s Strength or God-given Strength (the HolySpirit) to know, take on, and experience the POWERFUL, universe-creating, EXTRAVAGANT LOVE that is God!

This brings me to Romans 5:5– a bible verse that I’ve come to thoroughly relish!

Hope (in God) does not delude or disappointBECAUSE God has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His Love.

Romans 5:5

With the revelation that (1) the HolySpirit is the Grace of God and that (2) the Grace of God is sufficient,Romans 5:5could have stopped at because God has given us the HolySpirit … but it didn’t.

Also, it could have said because God loves us – this by the way is the foundation and essence of the gospel of Christ:God does love us sooooo very much. While this is undeniably true, Romans 5:5 doesn’t say this either. John 3:16 does 🥰.

It appears then that the use of language/words in Romans 5:5 was purposefully and deliberately structured to lay emphasis on the pouring of God’s Love and the filling of our hearts with God’s Love by the HolySpirit. To mean that, in addition to being passionately loved by God, we need God’s love in us <—— THIS is primarily what I’d like to call attention to.

Having learnt that if God gives it, we most definitely need it, it is apt to say that the pouring of God’s Love in our hearts is imperative. In other words, God’s Love in our hearts is a must-have!

Eagerly pursue and seek to acquire this Love as if your life depended on it – because it does.

1 Corinthians 14:1A(AMPC, MSG)

WHY should we make it our highest goal to have God’s Love in us?

Short answer …BECAUSE our lives depend on it.

HOW do our lives depend on it?

I’m hoping that the Love Connections outlined below will enable you arrive at a truth-based answer that’s personal to you.

Let’s get the ball rolling …

The Love of God in us is God’s power at work in us and it avails much!

By the action of His power that is at work in us,God does superabundantly, far over and above all that we dare ask or think … infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams

Ephesians 3:20

El Shaddai!🥰 The Inexhaustible One! The All-Sufficient One!

He IS EVERYTHING we need and infinitely MORE! He IS The MORE!

The riches of His abundance are without borders … unending and bottomless!

With Him, there is NO WHAT IF there isn’t enough to go round or enough left for me.

He IS undepletable – impossible to deplete! El Shaddai is His Name! 💖

In addition to this MORE-than-ANYTHING-you-can-DARE-to-ask-or-think blank cheque or black card,the Love of God leads to HOPE– one of the three must-haves called out in 1 Corinthians 13:13…

… because of this Love-based Hope, we are never left feeling short-changed. On the contrary, we can NOT round up enough containers to hold everything God so generously pours into our lives through the HolySpirit –Romans 5:5 (MSG).

By extension, this means that if all 7+ billion of us were to let God pour Himself (LOVE) into us … that’s 7+ billion containers … it still will NOT be enough to hold everything God wants us to have!

I’m very tempted to change the title of this blog to El Shaddai! … this right here is one of those moments where I’m almost certain I exploded and the Holy Spirit put me back together again! I’ll try to stay on track. 🙂

Here’s an outline of the connection between God’s Love and a few other must-haves.

From the above depiction, we see thatGod’s LOVE leads to PEACE which in turn leads to and is STRENGTH and COURAGE (the absence of fear).

If we pause to consider the extensive benefits of peace, strength, courage, and hope in our lives, we’ll catch a glimpse of the truth that the Love of God leads to all the must-haves we need and as such it is the greatest must-have of ALL.

Thankfully, God has made it ALL available to us …

God’s divine power (LOVE) has made available to us absolutely everything necessary for LIFEand godliness …

2 Peter 1:3A

How has God made all the must-haves (including His Love) available to us?

Through His SpiritWho pours God’s Love into our hearts.

How does the HolySpirit pour God’s Love into our hearts?

By telling and reminding us of the Word of God.

When the Spirit of Truth comes … He will speak only what He hears from the Father.

John 16:13

… He will teach you everything and will remind you of every word that I have told you.

John 14:26

Depicted below is anotherLove Connectionthat shows the link between LOVE (God),THE WORD OF GOD (God), andLIFE (God).

In other words, God’s Love is LIFE … this Life is the Light of all mankind. John 1:4

By telling and reminding us of God’s Word to, for, and regarding us, the HolySpirit reveals God’s heart to us and (in essence) pours God’s Love into our hearts.

How do we receive the inpouring of God’s Love into our hearts?

With humility

… receive and welcomewith humilitythe Word of God which is implanted and rooted in your hearts …

James 1:21B

What does it mean to receive with humility?

To receive solely on the basis that God gave it – no more, no less.

To receivewithoutany self-based orientation.

To receive with zero correlation, link, or connection to what we did or did not do, how well we did or didn’t do … whether or not we think or feel we are deserving …

… not even fears related to our experience of love. ZERO self-based orientation.

From a recent personal experience, I learnt and can unreservedly say that Adam and Eve were naked yet unafraid and unashamed BECAUSE of God’s Love – they lived and basked in it. It was poured into their hearts and they received it with all humility.

How so?

BEFORE eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they did NOT know that they were naked (knowing that one is naked involves some level of self orientation). All they knew and received was God (LOVE) – this in turn cast out all fears hence, they were unafraid.

In my somewhat similar experience, I saw a side of me that was not … God-like. Thanks to the Love of God that the HolySpirit continues to pour into my heart, I heard the whisper:

“Let yourself be vulnerable with God.“

I went to God and laid my heart bare before Him. I was vulnerable – admitting my weakness and exposing it to the Light, yet I was unashamed. Like Adam and Eve (in Genesis 2:25), I was naked and exposed yet unafraid or unashamed solely because of the Love of God … a LOVE that results in a PEACE that truly is beyond all natural understanding.

Our natural understanding, which represents a form of darkness or blindness, can NOT comprehend or make sense of the Love of God (Light). Thankfully, the Word of God is the Voice of Love – the Voice that pierces through all forms of darkness.

Our natural understanding, similar to that of Adam and Eve after eating of the tree, is self-oriented and tends to fear i.e. the fear of being punished, being rejected, or any number of WHAT-IFs … it also results in fear-based responses or actions including being fearfully responsible – SeLaH.

Nevertheless, the Love of God encourages us to BELIEVE and NOT give in to fear.

Do not be afraid;ONLY believe

Mark 5:36

Believing God is a practical example of receiving with humility.

Believing God is a form of self-surrender.

It involves laying aside all self-based orientation – what we think, feel, see, etc. It involves yielding our hearts to the truth of God’s Word which, as noted earlier, is the voice of God (Love).

ONLY the truth of God’s Love for and in us can utterly dispel all fears and fear-based responses. It’s a LOVE that choses MERCYover (and in) judgement.

… for with judgement comes the promise of salvation …

Isaiah 9:1(AMP)

It’s a LOVE that says: Let ME love you

In other words, “Let ME in and I will show you ME. To know ME is to know LOVE“

Those who trustGod’s action in themfind that God’s Spirit is in them – living and breathing God!

Romans 8:5B(MSG)

The Love of God in us is God’s action in us. His action in us is what leads to actively and interactively knowing Him <——THIS is LIFE …

… a Life that can ONLY be experienced by knowing Him (God, LOVE) personally.

God’s divine power has made available to us absolutely everything necessary for LIFE and godliness,through the full and personal knowledge of HimWho called us by and to His own glory and excellence.

2 Peter 1:3

God wants us to have and enjoy Him (Life) hence the outpouring of His Love – better put, the outpouring of Himself (Love) – into our hearts.

For everyone who is willing, you wanting to let God’s Love in your heart is evidence that God put the desire there. This reinforces the truth that He wants you to have and enjoy Him (Love, Life).

In alignment with God’s heart, I echo Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:19that you come to know the Love of God personally and that you become fully filled with Love (God).

In other words, I pray that you become God-FULL … Love-FULL … FULL of Life!

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Lessons Learned from the Garden of Eden – Part 3

I’ll wrap up this 3-part series with two additional lessons learned from the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.

First … a quick recount from Part 1 and Part 2.

God speaking to Adam:

“you may freely eat the fruit of every tree of the garden BUT NOT from the tree of the knowledge (recognition) of good and evil … the day that you eat from it, you most certainly will die.“

The enemy speaking to Eve:

“you certainly will not die. God knows that the moment you eat from this tree, you will have greater awareness and you will be like God, knowing everything (and the difference between) good and evil.“

REMINDER: Theenemyrefers to anything that seemingly exalts itself above God thus blocking us from seeing God. Anything that takes (or seeks to take) our attention away from God … anything that is contrary to God. They go by other names such as lies, liars, thieves …

Adam and Eve ate of the tree … obtained the knowledge of good and evil, realized for the very first time that they were naked, became afraid and hid … to the natural eyes, they didn’t die.

The truth is: they died!

They were still breathing, talking, moving around …

… dead nonetheless. Think of it as a case ofThe Walking Dead.

Lessons Learned #9: Our human (natural) mechanisms can NOT accurately comprehend the Ways and Word of God be it written, spoken, or personified.

… My ways are NOT your ways, they are higher …

Isaiah 55:8-9

When God said  the day that you eat from it, you most certainly will die … it is natural to think of this from the perspective of physical death.

Beyond the physical death is a form of death that I (still) can’t accurately describe, but I deduce that it is terrible solely based on the truth that God does NOT want us to experience the full extent of it – John 3:16-17 reveals this truth and God’s heart.

God so greatly loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him should not perishbut have everlasting (eternal) life.

God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

John 3:16-17

Without the HolySpirit, we can NOT accurately make sense of the Word of God, much less translate it appropriately. Case in point: John 3:1-10 …

Jesus was talking to a renowned expert/teacher (Nicodemus) about being born again. Nicodemus’ mind could not conceive of the premise, hence his response to Jesus: how can a grown man be re-born? It’s impossible for a man to go back into the womb a second time and be re-born!

How limiting are our natural senses! What full lives we would live if we lay our simple thoughts aside …

Lay aside your simple thoughts and leave your paths (limitations) behind …

Proverbs 9:6 (TPT)

In relation to the things of God, our natural eyes (including the eyes of our mind/understanding) are limited – they are eyes that don’t see (Mark 8:18) … they caN’T make sense of the things of God – this (in part) is why we need the HolySpirit.

Not by might, not by power, BUT (ONLY) by My Spirit, says the Lord

Zechariah 4:6

Thankfully, God gives us His Spirit … without limit! –John 3:34. Jehovah Jireh in action – always providing for our needs. 🥰

Interacting with the Word of God without a HolySpirit-enabled understanding is detrimental and ill-advised. Besides, why would we? The HolySpirit – the Spirit of God – is the ONLY One Who knows the heart of God (what He means and intends).

… who can really see into a person’s heart and know his hidden impulses except for that person’s spirit? So is it with God. His thoughts and secrets are ONLY fully understood by His Spirit … BUT He lets us in on it – God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that He is giving us. We don’t have to rely on the world’s guesses and opinions.

1 Corinthians 2:11-12

The HolySpirit knows all the juicy secrets that God Himself joyfully wants to reveal to us per time. John 16:13 – He speaks what He hears God say. In other words, we getFirst Hand Informationwith the must-have understanding required.

This is the Way of Peace (Luke 1:79) – living by Faith (the Word of God) through Grace (the Spirit of God), and NOT by sight (our human mechanisms/wherewithal).

Lessons Learned #10: God’s Word is inescapable. If He said it, it will surely come to be.

So will My word be which goes out of My mouth. It will NOT return to ME void – without results or producing any effect, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:11

WHEN Adam and Eve ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, true to the Word of God, they died … we all did!

It’s important to note that, in addition to the death being one that transcends physical death, the extent of its scope applied to all of mankind. In essence, we were born dead.

Thankfully, out of the abundance of His love and mercy … and true to His nature, God came for us and redeemed us – Isaiah 53

The wages of sin is death.

Romans 6:23

God paid the wages of our sin (unbelief) – the unbelief which led us to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the same unbelief that has since led us to rely on our own understanding and mechanisms (cisterns that do NOT hold water – Jeremiah 2:13), as opposed to relying solely on God.

2 Corinthians 5:21 – Jesus (God personified) knew no sin yet, He took on the consequences of our sins and paid the price for us – a price we could NEVER pay.

No amount of “good” works on our part could ever result in salvation (Isaiah 64:6)

We are saved by GRACE (the Spirit of God) through FAITH (the Word of God).

It is by free grace that we are saved through faith … this salvation is NOT of yourselves, of your own doing, or your own striving – it is NOT the result of what anyone can possibly do …

Ephesians 2:8-9

In other words, we are saved by the HolySpirit through Jesus.

The same Word-and-Spirit combo that created all of creation.

The Word of God became flesh – Jesus.

He came to earth to do and (in conjunction with the HolySpirit) did the needful, that we may have renewed life –Eternal (unshakable) Life #TheForeverDeal.

… I came that they may have and enjoy real and eternal life – life in its fullness and in abundance, till it overflows.

John 10:10B

A life born not of flesh and blood but by The Word-and-Spirit Combosame as in the Valley of Dry Bones –Ezekiel 37:1-14.

A life obtained and sustained not by works (“good” deeds) or human effort but simply by believing God – His Word, His Love … Who He IS.

How can we believe God without first knowing Him?

Well, that (I believe) is the essence of all God wants for us … I dare say that the cumulation of ALL that God has done from at least the foundation of the world till now and for all eternity sums up to thisONE THING– that we know Him.

Think about it … why have acompletedplan to save us from the foundation of the world? … BEFORE the creation of the tree that we ate and the death that ensued.

… the Lamb (JESUS) was slain from the foundation of the world.

Revelation 13:8B (KJV)

… God’s works were completed from the foundation of the world.

Hebrews 4:3B

In many words …

Why create a tree that results in death … have the tree be put within our reach … allow us be tricked into eating it … allow us eat it.

PS: I use the word allow NOT to mean that God made us do it or that He tempted us into eating of the tree – James 1:13 God does NOT tempt us to sin. I specifically and explicitly mean that (in His sovereignty) He could have prevented all of it but didn’t. He let it be …

… we died. We were given enough time to prove (by ourselves) the futility of our ways, all the while being the proof of the need for salvation AND our inability to save ourselves.

THEN at the right time, God subjected Himself to a mediocre life on earth and went through a visible, somewhat relatable ordeal by choosing to die a gruesome death.

He could very well have raised an eyebrow or tapped His finger. My point is, of the multitude of options He could have chosen from to save us from sin and death, He chose the most personal and humbling path!Hechosethe most sacrificial expression of Love known to mankind(John 15:13).

Why go through this VERY elaborate plan?

… to bring us to an expected end – HIM.

Jeremiah 29:11 , Revelation 22:13 (paraphrased)

That we may know Him … That we may know …

  • The power, faithfulness, and trustworthiness of His WORD.
  • His jealous, redeeming LOVE …

… how much He loves us and the extent He will go to redeem us.

  • The nature of His MERCY.
  • The efficacy of His GRACE.
  • He is LIFE (apart from Him is death).

To know God is eternal LIFE (John 17:3). To know Him is the essence and fullness of life … To know Him is our greatest satisfaction … To know Him is MERCY … JOY … and PEACE … To know Him is the TRUTH that sets us free (John 8:32).

In truth, knowing God is the ONLY knowledge worth having …

To know Him is the beginning and the choice part of Wisdom– Proverbs 9:10

To know Him is the Fear of God 🥰💖 – Proverbs 2:1-6

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Lessons Learned from the Garden of Eden – Part 2

Part 1 of this 3-part series started with a focus on one of the questions asked in the Garden of Eden: Did God really say?

The other note-worthy question that stuck with me is: Who told you that you were naked?

This was God’s response to Adam – see Genesis 3:6-11.

God knew they were naked – He created them that way. This means then that His question was not one of surprise, nor was it as a result of shock.

God is El Roi (all-knowing). He knew everything that had transpired earlier that day. This also means then that His question was not as a result of lack of intel.

Soooo … why ask a question to which He already knew the answer? Well … God is intentional and purposeful in all that He does. While there are most likely other reasons, I believe God asked this question so that I (and others) would learn the lessons hidden therein 🙂. #HiddenTreasures

The question ‘who told you that you were naked?’ focuses on the WHO behind what was said …

We see the same kinda question in Zechariah 4:7…

Who are you, O great mountain?

Zechariah 4:7

In essence, this great mountain before Zerubbabel said: ‘Impossible‘ and God’s response was ‘Who are you? … Who are you that what you say should matter?‘.

Lesson Learned #5: The WHO behind what was saiddetermines how much credence (if any) should be given to WHAT was said.

Situations have voices – they speak. Like the mountain referenced in Zechariah 4:7, every created thing has a voice – they speak (Psalm 19:1). In addition to what we say, what we see, feel, think, or perceive each have a voice – they speak.

In response to what you hear, before you put any stock in it, consider asking the question: WHO said it?. Alternatively, WHO is the underlying source?

Irrespective of the outlet – be it within (my thoughts, perspectives, feelings, etc.) or without (what people and/or situations say), I’m learning to ask the question: Who is it who speaks? Creator or Created?

ONLY the Creator, not the created, has a say (defines who I am, how I live).

By virtue of being my Creator, Elohim (God) alone has all the say in all things pertaining to me. Acts 17:28 – in Him I live, move, and have my being.

Even I don’t get a say – I didn’t create me. The same goes for every created thing – they don’t get to have a say concerning me.

It is true that God speaks to us through the created (people, animals, things, situations, etc.). The same is true of the enemy, which is why in response to whatever I hear, I’m learning to ask the question: What is the underlying source: Shakable or Unshakable?

How solid and reliable is the source? How long-lasting is its existence?

In other words, is it based on the Word of God? Is it based on Who God IS?

Luke 21:33 Matthew 24:35 and Psalm 40:8 (among others) echo the truth that the Word of God (God) is firm, immovable, and eternal. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is incorruptible, eternally relevant, and undiminished – no shadow of turning (The Unshakable).

These scriptures also clearly call out the unreliable and passing nature of everything else (aka the shakables) – everything that is NOT the Word of God, anything that does NOT stem from Faith or lead to Faith.

The Word of God is Faith – this is the unshakable kingdom that I’ve received (Hebrews 12:28), this is where I must and choose to put my God-given stocks … all of them 🙂.

Even with my very limited knowledge of the stock market, I know it is unwise to put stock in the shakables. I vehemently refuse to do so and I’m counting on the HolySpirit (the Grace of God) to help me with this (as with all things).

Lesson Learned #6 :If God said it, EXALT it. Exalt God’s Word above ALL else.

In other words, exalt what God says above what your eyes see, what your feelings feel, what your ears hear, what your mind suggests, what others say, the situation before you, and whatever else is there. Exalt God’s Word above all else.

Guess what! God does the exact same! Psalm 138:2B tells us that God exalts His Word (What He says) above all else (including His Names). We see Him do it in Isaiah 59:19B

WHEN the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD lifts up a standard (banner) against him and puts him to flight

Isaiah 59:19B

Who better to emulate than God! If God does it, it is (undoubtedly) prudent that we do the same – that we raise our Standard (Banner) against the enemy.

Putting this in context:

For everyone who believes (John 3:16) …

  • The enemy refers to anything that seemingly exalts itself above God thus blocking us from seeing God … anything that takes (or seeks to take) our attention away from God … anything that is contrary to God. They go by other names: lies, liars, thieves …
  • God is our Banner – Jehovah Nissi (Exodus 17:15)
  • God’s Banner over us is LOVE (Songs of Songs 2:4). Likened to the blood of Jesus, which signifies His sacrifice of death (John 15:3), this LOVE speaks better things over and concerning us (Hebrews 12:24).
  • God’s Word to us and concerning us is the voice of His love (for us).

With this understanding, the following correlation applies:

The Word of God = The (expression of the) Love of God = God = our Banner

In raising our Banner, we are exalting God’s Word to and concerning us, we are exalting God’s Love (our Banner’s Banner 🥰) for us, we are exalting God Himself against and above whatever form the enemy takes.

We raise our Banner (we exalt God) when we BELIEVE what He says – this includes the truth that He loves us, naked or not … that He wants us to come to Him, naked or not.

What has God told you? What has He said concerning you?

Rehearse it … Recite it … Recount it

Read it out Loud, Keep it before you.

Exodus 17:14 (AMPC, AMP, NKJV, NLT, MSG)

Lesson Learned #7 : If God did NOT say it, DISCARD it … it matters NOT.

Another way I’ve come to see the question ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ is:

What does it matter if I (Elohim – God your Creator) did not say it or tell you?

God knew they were naked but did not say it or tell them. If it mattered, if it was a need-to-know, God would have told them. I say this solely on the basis of Who God IS – Jehovah Jireh, our Provider, He gives what we need per time #OurDailyBread

He tells us what we need to know if/when we need to know it. In other words, if He does NOT say it or tell you, it is inconsequential. Discard it. #CTRL-ALT-Delete🙂

How do I discard it? I see the great mountain staring right back at me. I hear the roar of the raging tempest … the loud chatter of all these contrary things – things not in alignment with God’s Word to and concerning me. How do I discard them?

By NOT believing them actively nor passively.

What we hear can be likened to a planted seed (seemingly small yet impactful).

In believing it, we accept it as true and it takes root. In believing it, we tend to entertain (accommodate) it … we tend to focus on it (in thought, words, and/or action), we give credence to it … in other words, we exalt it.

Doing this creates a nurturing environment for the planted seed to bloom i.e. the right amount of sunlight, water, the whole nine! Consequently, the planted seed bears fruits!

The inverse is true, not believing what we hear prevents the planted seed from taking root, it creates a non-conducive environment for it, and ultimately causes the planted seed to wither or not bloom – to not find expression in our lives, to not have a say.

In believing, we give permission to whatever we believe (accept as true) to take form and find expressions in our lives – it becomes our experience, for good or bad. What do you accept as true? What do you allow or give permission to?

Who’s report will you believe? SeLaH

Even when it seems I’m surrounded by many liars and my own fears … though I’m hurting in my suffering … I’ll stay faithful to God and speak words of Faith.

Psalm 116:10-11 (TPT)

Lesson Learned #8: If God does NOT give it, we most definitely do NOT need it.

Going back to the truth that God is Jehovah Jireh, our Provider. He always provides for our every need. What this inherently means then is that IF He doesn’t give it, we don’t need it BECAUSE if we did, He most assuredly will give it.

By extension and in relation to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, in saying not to eat of it, God was implicitly saying we did/do NOT need it.

Retrospectively, I agree. Yeeeaaa 🙂… I’m partial to God and would agree with anything He says nonetheless. That said, putting my partiality partially aside and looking at what we’ve done with the knowledge of good and evil from the time of acquisition, it appears that most (if not all) of what we’ve done with it is misuse it, misappropriate it, or misapply it … the outcome of which has been fear, false and/or flawed judgment, self-righteousness … the list continues.

This then brings me to my first thoughtful response to the story of the Garden of Eden: Why did God put the tree of the knowledge of good and evil smack in the middle of the garden if He did not want us to eat of its fruits?

… in the middle of the garden, God placed the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 2:9 (NLT)

It could very well have been in the back corner somewhere – out of sight, out of mind … Clearly, God’s ways are not our ways.

As to why He put the tree where He put it, I most definitely don’t know and will not presume to know. That said, here’s what the HolySpirit helped me see:

The tree was purposely positioned and intended to point us to God.

Seeing the tree is inevitable … seeing the tree leads to the question WHY.

Why is this tree here?

Why is this tree different from the others?

Why shouldn’t we eat of it again? (we tend to forget 🙂)

Why does eating it lead to death?

Why did God create it?

These questions give us reasons to go to God and to inquire of Him.

They are conversation starters – case in point: Zechariah 4. Through these conversations (communion), God reveals His mysteries … He reveals Who He IS, His ways, His heart. #HiddenTreasures🥰

Ask Me and I will tell you remarkable secrets … Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things – things that have been confined, fenced in, hidden … I will tell you marvelous and wonderous things that you could never figure out on your own.

Jeremiah 33:3 (NLT, AMP, MSG)

In going to God with these questions (with a seeking heart) we inherently believe Him – Hebrews 11:6. As a result of believing Him, His response to our questions – His Word to us (Who He IS) – takes root in our lives.

His presence makes for the perfect nurturing environment and so by way of active communion with God, the fruits that His presence brings forth (Galatians 5:22-23) bloom and multiply. The fragrance of His presence surrounds us and is released through us – a sweet smelling savor in deed!

His responses to our questions – His Words of Love – become our every moment’s bread. We eat our fill from the pleasures of His presence – Psalm 16:11, 36:8.

This is our design: to truly live and be sustained by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth – Matthew 4:4B.

… Listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your Life – your good life, your abundant life, your fulfillment, and the length of your days …

Deuteronomy 30:20 (NIV, AMP)

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Abba, my Abba, thank You for Your words of love to me and concerning me – I believe you. Thank You for the continuous supply of Oil – Your Word and Your Spirit. I need them thus You give them – thank You Jehovah Jireh for providing for my every need.

Elohim, I am who and what You say. Word of God, reign, rule, and be fully expressed in my life. You birthed me – James 1:18, as such what You say goes. You are my identity, my reputation, my banner. You define me – in You I live, move, and have my being – Acts 17:21.

HolySpirit, Grace of God, You are God’s action in me. I am able to believe the Word of God solely because You enable me to. Help me to always follow in Your footstep – to raise my Banner and my Banner’s Banner always. Thank You for all that You do in me and for me. You are a preciousness like none other! 🥰

Lessons Learned from the Garden of Eden – Part 1

I find the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden quite intriguing and surprisingly filled with personally valuable and relatable lessons learned.

If you’d like to give it a read, the story can be found in Genesis 2:4-3:24.

The very first thoughtful question I had in relation to the story was: Why did God put the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil right in the middle of the Garden if He did not want Adam and Eve to eat of it?

Between the time of this question and today, my cousin (Lana) and I have had several conversations about the Garden of Eden in the last four (going on five) years. It’s amazing how talking about guys … a frustrating day at work … a TV show … life as we experience it, and so on, ends up in a conversation about the Garden of Eden! 😊

One of the early conclusions we arrived at was that: we are all Eve. We all (at some point) exhibit one or more of her underlying characteristics, tendencies, and/or responses.

In line with the perspective that we are all Eve, Lana and I painted a picture of our respective versions of Eve. Given my love for food (coversface), we agreed that I’ll very likely be the version of Eve who was still by the tree with the fruit in her mouth (most likely the fifth one) when God came down in the cool of the day to hang out (fellowship) with them 🤭😐.

My version of Eve aside, of particular interest (to me) are the questions asked in this story … the first of which was: Did God really say? (Genesis 3:1)

Before I dive into that, here’s a quick run-through of the events preceding the question.

God created Adam … He planted a garden (Eden) and put Adam in it … He gave Adam the liberty to do as he pleased with the exception of eating of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

… you may freely eat the fruit of every tree of the garden BUT NOT from the tree of the knowledge (recognition) of good and evil … the day that you eat from it, you most certainly will die.

Genesis 2:16-17

Sometime after all of these, God created Eve.

While the bible doesn’t record this, I’m assuming that when Eve got to the scene, Adam told her about not eating of/from the tree. Going by this, it means then that, unlike Adam, who got the instruction first hand, Eve was going off of what someone said God said (second-handed information).

Side Note: For clarity and context, by second-hand information I mean any information not obtained personally and directly from God. This (for me) includes: (1) anything that does not echo what God told me directly, OR (2) anything that God has not told me directly.

Back to the story 🙂 …

Eve arrived on the scene, Adam was elated, and they went about living their best lives … naked, unashamed, and unafraid (Genesis 2:25) – I’ll come back to this.

However long after Eve’s arrival, the story goes on to say that Satan (in the form of a serpent) went to her and asked: Can it really be that God said you shall not eat from every tree of the garden?

In other words …

Did God really say?

This question is two-fold in its application.

  1. In the context of Genesis 3:1, the question was ill-intended. It was aimed at instilling doubt and instigating a fear-based response.

It (clearly) was not a genuine I-don’t-know-and-seek-an-answer kinda question. If it was, why didn’t he go to Adam who would have had a firm answer and possibly an undeterred standpoint, seeing has he got the information (instruction) first hand?

Being asked such a question, especially about information that was passed-down, is likely to result in doubt … doubting the applicability or validity of the information.

Similarly, when asked a question about something we don’t know, knowing we don’t know (the unknown) naturally translates to fear and consequently the need to do something about it i.e. get rid of the fear.

Same as with Eve in Genesis 3:1, every now and again, we too are asked this question in a doubt-centric and fear-oriented way. Hence the encouragement (in 1 Peter 5:8) to be vigilant because the enemy roams around, incessantly looking for folks to prey on.

  1. Contrary to Satan’s ill intent, this question can be a tool that points us back to God. Personally, it has.

Since understanding this, I’ve been asking myself the question:

Did God really say?

When my answer is Yes, WHAT God said (His Word) serves as my hope, my response, my confidence, my strength, my encouragement, my anchor.

When my answer is I don’t know or I’m not sure, asking this question points me to God.

In addition to being asked the question ‘did God really say?’, Eve was given another round of second-handed information (Genesis 3:4-5) … the serpent said to her:

you certainly will not die. God knows that the moment you eat from this tree, you will have greater awareness and you will be like God, knowing everything (and the difference between) good and evil.

This information was:

  1. Misleading – God created mankind in his image (Genesis 1:26-27). Eve was already like God (so was Adam) – they were created in the image and likeness of God. They didn’t have to do anything to be like what they already were.
  1. Contrary – God did say that they would die if they ate of the tree … true to God’s Word, they did – they died! Actually, we all did actually. *More to come on this in Part 3*

Influenced by this lie, Eve set her gaze on the tree – she saw that it was pleasant for food, delightful to look at … and realized what she would get out of it – she would know everything. This was a tree that would make her wise and insightful! She then took of its fruit and ate.

Eve knew not to eat of the tree but she did.

She had the information (presumably gotten from Adam) – she knew the WHAT but NOT the (must-have) understanding of the WHY, or better yet the WHO, behind the WHAT. By must-have understanding I’m referring to a personal, truth-based conviction and revelation that (I believe) is only possible when information (in this case – the Word of God) is obtained directly from the source (God). SeLaH.

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Lesson Learned #1: When dealing with second-handed information, ask the question – did God really say?

God speaks to us through others and there’s nothing wrong with this. That said, I believe it is detrimental and short-changing to have this be the primary and/or sole source of truth. Passed-down information tend to be:

  1. Watered down – mixed with personal preferences, prescriptions, or translations.

and/or

  1. Void of the personal conviction, resonance, as well as peace that come from a first-hand, from-the-source experience.

I believe this played a significant part in Eve eating of the tree. Do NOT rely solely on other people’s rendition of what God said (especially) to and/or concerning you.

Enabled by grace, go directly to God and ask Him: did You really say this/that?

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Lesson Learned #2: Seek to hear from God directly.

In and through Christ Jesus, we have direct access to God. Go to Him and inquire of Him … ask Him … seek to hear from Him directly. 2 Samuel 7

God wants us to come to Him, inquire of Him, and hear from Him directly.

This is our design …

… man lives by every word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.

Matthew 4:4B

It’s also what God wants … Isaiah 54:13

Call to Me and I will answer you … I will tell you and even show you great and mighty things – things that you could never figure out on your own

Jeremiah 33:3

Go directly to the source – God. In addition to getting the truth and the freedom that comes with it (John 8:32), going to God is an opportunity to fellowship with Him … to know Him personally and increasingly… to bask in His presence! 💖

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Back to the Garden 🙂 …

Eve ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, after which she gave Adam of its fruit and he too ate it. Thereafter, their eyes were opened and for the very first time they saw (were aware) that they were naked even though they had been naked all along.

Later on (in the cool of the day), they heard the sound of God walking in the garden and they hid themselves from the presence of God! 💔

God called out to Adam.

God: Adam, where are you?

Adam: I heard the sound of You walking in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself.

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Lesson Learned #3: When you see aspects of yourself that you don’t like and/or are ashamed about, don’t retreat or draw back from God.

Retreating seems to be the natural first response – the shame, the disappointment in one’s self, or the presumption that God is disappointed in us, tends to result in us drawing away from Him. I say this because I lived it … I was in this place many times than I can count.

For a very long time, when I’d fall, my response was to not talk to God – I couldn’t bring myself to. Like Adam and Eve, I too would hide … I hid behind food, entertainment (binging TV shows), anything that made me feel good … anything that drowned out the guilt, shame, and disappointment BUT all my hiding had a temporary distracting effect (at best).

Thankfully, in His love, mercy, and grace, God always came for me.

With the help of the HolySpirit and over time, I learnt not to be preemptive in my action or presumption in my thinking (that God was disappointed in me). I learnt that my response should always be to go to God … to leave it to Him to decide whether or not He is disappointed and have Him make the next move. Experientially, His next move and response to me have always been (and continues to be) LOVE.

Initially, I was confused by this so I asked Him why, here’s how that conversation went …

No matter what happens, the best place to be is in God’s presence – at the mercy of His faithful and unrelenting Love

… I’d rather fall into the hands of the LORD, for His mercies are many and great, than fall into the hands of man (myself included)

2 Samuel 24:14 (paraphrased)

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Circling back to Genesis 2:25 (as promised 🙂) …

… before eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam and Eve were naked but unashamed – they went about their day living free and unafraid.

The man and his wife (Adam and Eve) were both naked yet unashamed.

Genesis 2:25

While they may not have known that they were naked all along, God knew … He made them that way and considered it good (Genesis 1:31).

Fast-forward to after eating of the tree, the first use of this newly acquired knowledge of good versus evil was a misjudgment – they considered and concluded as bad what God considered and concluded as good.

The first judgment call made was:

“being naked is bad, let’s try to fix it by using those not-so-durable leaves over there as clothing …“

… a misjudgment that led to fear AND a subsequent attempt to fix things on their own.

… all our righteousness –our best deeds of rightness is like filthy rags or a polluted garment, our best effort are grease-stained rags …

Isaiah 64:6

……………………………………………………

Lessons Learned #4: Lean not on your own understanding.

What we see and know is limited – I wholeheartedly believe this is by design. A designed predicated on faith – the leaning of one’s personality solely on God … living by every Word that proceeds out of God’s mouth.

The man who through faith is just and upright shall live … and shall live by faith.

Romans 1:17; Habakkuk 2:4

We are designed to walk (live) by faith and not by sight – to regulate our lives based on the HolySpirit-revealed-and-enabled knowledge of God, not by appearance or what we see with our natural eyes – 2 Corinthians 5:7.

The just (those concerning whom God’s conclusion in Genesis 1:31 holds true) live by faith – the Word of God, and not by sight: sensual, non-faith-based understanding i.e. what we see, think, feel, etc.

The latter is an example of cisterns that don’t hold water – Jeremiah 2:13.

Lean on, trust in, and rely on the LORD with all your heart.Do NOTlean/rely on your own insight, opinion, and understanding. Do not assume that you know it all. Be intimate (open) with Him … Listen for His voice in everything you do and every where you go. He will direct Your path.

Proverbs 3:5-6(AMP, MSG, TPT)

Especially considering that we have the tendency to misapply it, do NOT pass judgement on yourself based on your knowledge of good and evil. In stead, go to God exactly as you are …

  • Naked – Ezekiel16:4-13
  • Filthy – Zechariah 3:1-4
  • Unsure – Genesis 25:22
  • Weary – Matthew 11:28 (AMP, TPT)
  • Undone – Luke 15:11-32
  • Afraid – Psalm 34:4

I sought the LORD of necessity and on the authority of His Word … He heard me and delivered me from all my fears.

Psalm 34:4

… no matter what, God’s presence is exactly the right place to be.

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Thank You Abba for the privilege to come to You and into Your presence.

I acknowledge that You are LOVE … Thank You for Your mercy-FULL and faith-FULL Love. Your Faithfulness (Who You are) is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Thank You for opening me up to know You personally and increasingly.

Thank You for the revelation of Your Love … the revelation of Who YOU are to me and what it means for and to me. Help me to never take this beautiful heritage lightly or for granted … to never abuse or misuse Your grace.

I enjoy our journey of JOY in Your presence (Psalm 16:11) – You are my delight, the joy and rejoicing of my heart. To know You is Life – You are my Life. 💖

Help me to always exalt Your Word above all else, same as You do (Psalm 138:2B).

Struggling? … The Next Best Move

… PRAY.

Take it to God … Talk to Him about it … Give it to God.

Consider starting by telling God exactly that … then ask Him to teach, enable, and tell you what and how to PRAY.

I do NOT like struggles. That said, over the last year my aversion to it has significantly reduced solely because of the

truths the Holy Spirit reveals to me.

With the hope that these truths will bless you as they bless me, I’ll be sharing a few of them with you.

God already knows …

Sometime early this year, in a moment of prayer, I struggled with words – I felt like my words to God that morning were not well-put-together, they seemed disjointed.

Before I became distracted by this, the Holy Spirit helped me understand that the eloquence or correctness of my words in prayer is not the criteria, God already knows. He knows what I’d say even before the thought of praying crosses my mind. He is not unaware.

This revelation (that God already knows) is peace-giving on at least two accounts:

  1. I don’t have to worry about any miscommunication on my end, nor any resulting misunderstanding on God’s end.
  1. God knowing isn’t just mere awareness … Him knowing results in action. It’s safe to say then that God knowing makes it (what ever it is) a done deal.

…because He hears us(because He knows)… what we asked for is as good as ours.

1 John 5:15

COME … Expose it to the Light.

For a VERY long time I struggled with being a Christian – I didn’t know how. Also, I couldn’t meet all the externally prescribed and internally imposed criteria on How-To-Be-a-Christian. With every attempt made, I failed. This (at some point) led me to feeling like I must not love God … it was a painfully awful experience!

In His love and mercy, God stepped in. In addition to helping me see that I am the clay and that He is The Potter (the Author, Writer, Sculptor, and Perfecter of my faith), He helped me see (understand) what my next best move would (and should) always be: bring it to Him (whatever it is, including me).

Come to MEall who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest (refreshing your soul with salvation).

Matthew 11:28

In other words, God was saying to me:

Do NOT build cisterns (Jeremiah 2:13) … Do NOT attempt to fix it on your own – stop your silly attempts and efforts to save yourself (Isaiah 30:15). In stead, COME to Me – bring it to Me, expose it to the Light (John 12:46) … I AM your everlasting Light.

Let God do it for you … the do-it-yourself approach is futile.

Not too long ago, I struggled with being weak. I felt tired and was weary of being needy … of being in a place where I needed God’s help or saving always.

I should be strong enough to handle this.

With all that the Holy Spirit had taught, told, and shown me, I expected myself to be strong enough to (at least) take on the “small things” on my own and not have to go to God to do everything for me – including coming to Him!

Going to God to ask for or get help involves acknowledging that I’m weak. In that chapter of my walk with God, I most definitely was feeling a type of way about this seemingly constant reminder of my weakness and inability to help myself.

In His response to me, God revealed that I will never be strong enough. He reminded me that I will always be the need for Who He IS. I was created to be the demand for Who He IS – I’m the demand, He is the Supply (and Supplier).

  • He is Strength and a Strengthener, as such, I will need strength.
  • He is Savior and Salvation, as such, I will need saving.
  • He is a Helper – a very present help in time of need, as such, I will need help.

Except the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Except the LORD keeps the city, the watchman stays awake in vain … he might as well nap.

Psalm 127:1

In other words, it can NOT truly be done unless God does it.

In addition to it being a sin (Romans 14:23), “doing” it on my own is futile.

… in stead of re-doubling our own efforts, we should simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us …we do not owe this old do-it-yourself life one cent. There’s nothing in it for us, nothing at all.

Romans 8:4,12 (MSG)

Letting God do (fix) it is the only way it truly gets done (fixed). Let Him do it.

It is an opportunity to experience God …

I struggle with anger – I’m quick to frustration, offense, and (if not checked) ultimately anger. This is my natural response to being treated unjustly …

… Yes, I am aware of James 1:20, Proverbs 14:29, and Ecclesiastes 7:9 – all very good reasons to want to nip this temperament or natural inclination in the bud. I want to but honestly some days, it kicks my butt. One of such times, with the help of the HolySpirit, I took it to God. His response to me was:

This mountain will be made plain … stand still and see the salvation of The LORD which He will accomplish for you today. The Egyptians you see today, you will see no more … The LORD will fight for you … you only need to be still … move forward toward the sea!

(Zechariah 4:7A, Exodus 14:13-15)

… move forward toward the sea. Before I elaborate more on this, let me quickly point out that in His response to me (as well as to the Israelites in Exodus 14:13-15), God indicated:

  • His awareness of the situation – my natural inclination … the Egyptians in the rear … the sea up ahead, and
  • That He would take care of things for me … for them … for us.

All we have to do is be still (believe God) and experience (know) Him. Hence, ‘move forward toward the sea’.

The sea, as with all struggles and obstacles that we face, is not meant to drown or overcome us; they serve a purpose and present us with the priceless, life-giving opportunity to experience God.

For the benefit of those who are not familiar with what ensued after Exodus 14:13-15, God parted the sea and the Israelites walked right through it … on dry land! 💖 The Egyptians who followed after them? Well … Ehmmm … not so much!

Looking at the sea (obstacle) before us, we can be tempted to try to do something about it in our own strength. In the story of the Israelites in Exodus 14, this would look like trying to build boats to help sail across – a seemingly natural and reasonable thing to do yet, doing so would have been futile! They did not need boats; they ended up walking as opposed to sailing.

I do not think the way you think.
The way you work is not the way I work – your ways are NOT My ways, says The LORD.

Isaiah 55:8 (MSG)

Another similar story is that of Paul in2 Corinthians 12:8-10.

Here, we see Paul telling God about his struggle …

… and God responded back to him, saying: “My Grace is sufficient for you”.

My Grace is sufficient for you … it is all you need. My Strength (power) finds full expression in and through your weakness.

2 Corinthians 12:9 (AMPC, AMP, TPT)

Prior to the understanding I now have on what God was saying to Paul in the above verse, I found God’s response to be seemingly unrelated and somewhat dismissive.

Paul wasn’t questioning the validity of God’s Grace. That he called on God and went to Him with his struggles is indication that he trusted God’s Grace. So why would God’s response be something seemingly unrelated to the matter at hand?

Well, it wasn’t unrelated. On the contrary, it was an intentional, very relevant, and insightful response. In truth, God was saying to Paul:

I AM enough. All that matters is Who I AM … not the how, not even the fix. Set your gaze on Me, not your struggle, not the affliction, not the raging tempest. Set your eyes on ME and truly experience Me – My Strength, My Grace, My Love, My Glory.

WHO I AM is fully expressed in your weakness … in this place of struggle (affliction) is where you come to know Me personally and increasingly.

The same end result – to know and experience God – is what we see in Job’s story. Having endured all that he did, Job’s response to God was (Job 42:5):

I had heard of You only by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. I once lived by rumors of You; now I have it all firsthand – from my own eyes and ears.

Struggles (afflictions) serve a function in our walk with God – they set the stage for the display of the Glory of God. They present us with the opportunity to know and experience God – to know God is eternal Life (John 17:3), real Life (1 John 5:20), abundant Life (John 10:10B).

The opportunity to know and experience God is what drastically reduced my aversion to struggles/affliction. With the help of the Holy Spirit, I’ve come to learn that like fish in water, my habitat is any where I see and experience God … this includes the place of struggle (or affliction).

I still do NOT like them and would rather avoid them BUT, I would much rather know God – I would much rather experience Him personally, progressively, and fully.

While struggles/afflictions are NOT fun, they serve a rewarding purpose and are points along the best pathway to the expected end – to know God (our greatest reward and the essence of Life itself) … our faith perfected.

… so that the genuineness of your faith, which is more precious than gold, may be found to result in praise, glory, and honor …

1 Peter 1:6-7

Faith = the Knowledge of God. It is how I please God – the very purpose for which I was created (Revelation 4:11).

Soooo, all things considered …

… struggles are inevitable. Nevertheless, they are not intended to (and in truth will not) harm us – Jeremiah 29:11. They are instrumental to the refining and perfecting of our faith.

We all struggle. What one might consider seemingly small is, (by experience) to another, an overwhelming giant. That said, no matter the gravity and impact of the struggle, God is infinitely bigger. Like He was with the three Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3), He is here with us even now.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you … and through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned or scorched, nor will the flame kindle upon you.

Isaiah 43:2

God is with us in the midst of the storm. The storm isn’t the only thing happening; God (LOVE) is happening too. Look for God in the struggle – He is there. Let’s not let our hearts be troubled when we hear the roar of the raging tempest; instead let’s be still (believe God) … The LORD our God in the midst of us is mighty to save – Zephaniah 3:17A.

Struggles and afflictions suck! God is very aware … He says: Come

… let everyone who is painfully conscious of his need of those things by which the soul is refreshed, supported, and strengthened … let him COME …

Revelation 22:17 (AMPC)

God says: Let Me carry it for you …

Cast your burden (releasing the weight of it) on The LORD … pile it up on God’s shoulders; He will carry your load and help you out, His measureless grace will strengthen you.

Psalm 55:22 (AMPC, MSG, TPT)

He can take it … He is Almighty! Let’s give it (and keep giving it) to Him.

Struggling? Afflicted? PRAY – this is the next best (and ONLY life-giving) move.

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🎵 What a privilege it is to carry everything to God in prayer!

O What peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear!

All because we do NOT carry everything to God in prayer🎵

Abba, thank You for the privilege to come to You. Thank You for working all things together for my good AND Your glory. #The2-in-1Combo 💖

You bear my burdens and carry me day by day; You are my Salvation –Psalm 68:19

Who else can I call? Who has strength to truly save? ONLY You are mighty to save!

Doing exactly the MOST! 🤭

Do not be afraid; ONLY believe (accept as true).

Mark 5:36

Is this really ALL that’s required? … Is this the MOST that’s expected of me?

YES – the Word of God says it’s exactly what’s required/expected:

John 3:16 – God so greatly and dearly loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son … whoever BELIEVES in Him will not perish but have everlasting Life.

Hebrews 11:6 – Without Faith, it is impossible to (walk with and) please God, for whoever comes to God must necessarily BELIEVE that God exists … that He rewards (and cares enough to respond to) those who seek Him.

John 1:12 – To as many who BELIEVED Him and accepted Him, He gave the right (power) to become children of God – their true selves (their child-of-God selves). SeLaH [AMPC, NKJV, MSG]

Mark 11:24 – whatever you ask in prayer (absolutely everything, ranging from small to large… as you embrace this God-Life), BELIEVE that you have received it, and it will be yours. [AMPC, NKJV, MSG, TPT]

John 5:24 – Most assuredly I say to you, he who hears My word and BELIEVES in (aligns himself with the) Father will never be condemned, and has already passed over from death to Life. [NKJV, MSG, AMP]

Following the revelation that God and I connect when I believe Him, the HolySpirit has been teaching me about believing God. Here’s what I’ve learnt thus far:

  1. Believing God = Loving God.

If you really love Me, you will keep and obey My commandments.

John 14:15

True, genuine (non-self-focused OR solely-God-focused) obedience is impossible without first believing Him. The genuineness and extent of my obedience to God is a function of how much I believe and trust Him – SeLaH.

Case in point: If I don’t trust an authority figure (be it a person, organization, or system), I naturally won’t put stock in what they say. Consequently, I won’t obey what they say. If not obeying results in some form of punishment, I’m inclined to obey out of self-gain (i.e. not being punished).

The latter is an example of what I mean by self-focused obedience. I know it all too well because it was the extent of my interaction with God for a VERY long time. I’m grateful for the Love of God (Jesus) and the HolySpirit Who lovingly pulled me out of that miry pit! 😊

Each time I believe God, I’m really telling Him: I love YOU! 💖

For someone who (for a VERY long time) deeply struggled with the question: do I really love God? It blesses me greatly to be able to confidently say Yes; to say I love God and it not be mere words or what I’m supposed to say … but simply the truth! Thank You HolySpirit for making this possible! 🥰

  1. Believing God = Partnership with God … an agreement/alignment of hearts and will – His and mine; a perfect partnership!

My darling bride, my private paradise, fastened to My heart … What a perfect partner to Me …

Songs of Solomon 4:12 TPT

Why the need for this agreement/partnership? God doesn’t need me to get anything done.

Very true! God does God all by Himself. However, believing God is not an agreement that tends toward doing (performance). It is not about doing – the doing is DONE (Revelation 21:6). It was done before the foundation of the world!

… God’s works have all been completed and finished from the foundation of the world, waiting and ready for all who would believe.

Hebrews 4:3B (AMP, TPT, MSG)

Quite similar to signing a legal document, believing God is an agreement that entitles me to ALL of God, giving me direct access to ALL HE IS, all that comes with Him, and all that He has done.

In believing God, I become one with God. As such, my prayers are in agreement with His will – the outcome of which is my utmost satisfaction and God glorified!

We are sure that if we ask anything in agreement with God’s own plan (His will), He listens to and hears us.

We positively know (with settled and absolute knowledge) that because He hears us, we have (as our present possessions) the requests we ask of Him.

I John 5:14-15
  1. Believing God is the key to unlocking and experiencing the promises of God.

There’s the blessing of/from God that everyone (believer or not) benefits from – Matthew 5:45B. By promises of God, I’m not referring to this general (everyone-gets-it) blessing. I’m referring to the inheritance that believers have in and through Jesus Christ – the only begotten Son of God. Here’s what He says:

… come with Me through the archway of trust (the crest of Amana).

Songs of Solomon 4:8B (TPT)

Amana means AMEN (Revelation 3:14 – Jesus is the AMEN) – the realm where God’s promises are kept (hidden) and realized (seen).

All the promises of God to us (individually as well as collectively) are Yes and AMEN – accepting and receiving. They are ready for grabs by those who will believe Him – those who will step in, receive, and enjoy (John 10:10B AMPC).

  1. Believing God is the currency of transaction in God’s economy.

In the kingdom of God (the realm of the unseen), believing Him can be likened to what money represents here on earth (the realm of the seen). One key difference however is that money is limited to this natural, earthly realm. Unlike money, believing God is a currency with purchasing power across both realms – this applies to things money can buy and especially those money can NOT buy.

Believing God is how things are bought in the kingdom of God.

… Come to the waters … he who has no money, come, buy, eat! Yes, come, buy … without money or price [simply accept it as a gift from God]

Isaiah 55:1

Here’s what I want you to do: buy your gold from Me … then you will be rich. Buy your clothes from Me … Buy medicine for your eyes from Me so you can see

Revelation 3:18

Not money … not doing (including what I do for God) …

Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him.

Romans 12:1B (MSG)

… instead believing (embracing) God is how I receive ALL that God has done and has made available to me – 2 Peter 1:3.

  1. Believing God is the surest way to be still.

Be still and know that I AM God

Psalm 46:10

Being still in this context means being undistracted by lies (any thing that is not the Word of God, not God, not Truth) … It means being at peace – a state of rest.

I 💖 the AMPC version of Philippians 4:7. It describes peace as the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ and so fearing nothing … This is the peace to which I’ve been called (Colossians 3:15). This peace is the inheritance that I’ve obtained from God in Christ Jesus (Isaiah 54:17) – His rest.

… they were not able to enter into His rest, they could not enter into their inheritance because of unbelief …

For those of us who believe, faith activates the promise and we experience the realm of confident rest … we who believe enter His rest …

Hebrews 3:19, 4:3A (AMPC, TPT, MSG)

Believing God transports me to a place of stillness and undisturbedness, away from the noise (distractions), thus making it possible for me to see and know (experience) Him – He is sheer beauty! 💖 (Psalm 100:5 MSG).

  1. Believing God is an expression of true worship.

I’ll explain this from two (related) perspectives:

  1. It is clear from Psalm 138:2 that God exalts His Word above all else, and from John 1:1 that the Word of God is God. Therefore, in believing God – What He says and Who He IS – I exalt Him. I exalt the One Who is above all. This literally is the highest possible worship there is.

In other words … 😊 this is the most! SeLaH

  1. Believing God inherently involves (and requires) surrender – a genuine expression of worship.

… surrender yourself to God to be His sacred, living sacrifice – the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him – this is your genuine expression of worship.

Romans 12: 1 (TPT, NLT)

Believing God involves surrendering what I know or think I know.

It involves stepping into the unknown and the unseen solely based on the Word of God (Who God IS) – this pleases God. Hebrews 11:6

… The Father (Abba) is looking for those who will worship Him in spirit (from the heart) and in truth (based on Who He IS). God is Spirit and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth.

John 4:23-24

In believing God, I offer sacrifices of right worship to God. Deuteronomy 33:19 💖

  1. Though seemingly small, like a mustard seed, believing God is a POWERFUL force!

… if you have faith the size of a mustard seed … nothing will be impossible for you.

Matthew 17:20

… he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; greater works than these he will do …

John 14:12

Believing God is a force powerful enough to connect me with God; a force powerful enough to translate me FROM

  • slave TO daughter, bride, and friend 💖🥰
  • sin TO Righteousness – 2 Corinthians 5:21
  • the miry clay TO the solid Rock – Psalm 40:2
  • darkness TO Light – 1 Peter 2:9
  • death TO Life – John 5:24

Considering all of the above, it is quite evident why the enemy actively seeks to instigate UNBELIEF – the sin that so readily besets me. SeLaH

The enemy will no doubt (but for a time) attempt to steal, kill, and destroy. No matter, I overwhelmingly conquer through the One Who loves me – God (Father, Son, Spirit). I need only be still (believe) – Exodus 14:13-15 💖

Do not be afraid, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today … the Egyptians (enemy) you see today, you’re never going to see them again.

The LORD will fight for you … you just hold your peace, remain at rest (believe) …

… move forward toward the sea.

Exodus 14:13-15

In other words, God is saying: believe Me and live what you believe.

In living what I believe – Who God IS, what He tells me (i.e. move forward toward the sea), I am led along the best pathway for my life (Psalm 32:8 NLT) and to the realm where God’s promises are kept and realized, a life of true satisfaction … in this, God is glorified!

What has God told you? What has He revealed to you? No matter how seemingly ludicrous or far-fetched, believe and continue to believe Him – therein is LIFE.

If you are struggling with believing God, I encourage you to be honest with Him about the struggle. From personal experiencesssss, and more so on the basis of Who He is, God will not condemn you. On the contrary, He will enable you to believe Him – the end of which is Real, Eternal LIFE. This expected end is the life that you deserve solely because God has given it to you (Jeremiah 29:11).

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I love YOU (Abba, Son, HolySpirit). How can I not? YOU are all I know to be trustworthy – I have no valid (truthful) reason to not believe YOU.

Believing YOU is doing the exact most – the most that’s expected of me. On this note, having done all the most 😊, help me stand that I may see Your salvation.

PS: I 💖 that it’s YOU making (enabling) me do the most! Doing the most with YOU is rad!

When God and I Connect (Clay meets Potter)

Can two walk together except they be agreed?

Amos 3:3

Genesis 5:24 – Enoch walked with God. SeLaH

Very recently, I saw and understood (for the first time) that these words describe oneness with God – God and man (two) becoming one.

The reality of this connection is quite astonishing. Even more so, is the realization that God wants it! The God of ALL creation wants to connect with us – mere earthen vessels (clay).

… we have this precious treasure (God) in earthen vessels of human frailty, in unadorned clay pots …

2 Corinthians 4:7 (snippet)

This might be why David, also dazed by these revelations, asked the question: what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? Psalm 8:4 (NKJV) What a privilege it is to have God come to be one with us 💖 … what a privilege it is to connect, commune, walk, and be one with The Most High God (El Elyon)! Speaking of this touch-point …

  1. WHEN does it happen?
  1. HOW does it happen?
  1. WHAT happens when it does?

Let’s start with the first question …

WHEN does the connection happen?

Answer: When we believe God.

Here’s what started me on the journey that ultimately led to the above truth:

… whatever you ask for in prayer, having faith and [really] believing, you will receive.

Matthew 21:22 (AMPC)

I read the AMPC version of Matthew 21:22 and almost immediately my inclination for words kicked in – Faith versus Belief. Yes, both words can be (and are) used interchangeably – rightfully so. However, in reading the above verse, I picked up on there being a difference between the two. The difference being that Faith (which is the Word of God; Who God is) precedes Belief or believing – I can’t disbelieve or believe (accept as true) what I don’t first encounter.

FIRST, I encounter God (His Word, His Spirit, Who He is) through any number of ways. THEN, with the help of His Spirit (The Holy Spirit), I believe. #SpoilerAlert 😉

In other words, Faith births Belief.

I hadn’t heard or seen this delineation before. Out of curiosity, I asked my cousin (Lana) what she thought was the difference between Faith and Belief (if any). Here’s a snippet of what she said:

” … I think belief is the result of matching my (human) being with more than me. Faith does not require my being but belief does.“

As with almost all my interactions with Lana, I heard God speak to me! Through her response …

  1. The HolySpirit affirmed that God (the Word of God … Faith) IS. He JUST IS. He does not require any person or thing to BE. God is God regardless and always.

Know this: God is God, and God, God … we did NOT make Him …

Psalm 100:3 (MSG)

  1. The HolySpirit affirmed that God is MORE than me. He is in me and beyond me simultaneously.

Unlike me, God is not limited to time (He exists in and out of time).

He is not limited to this natural, earthly world. He exists in the realm of the seen (earthly world) as well as the unseen; the latter being the realm from which all that we see in the former was birthed (Hebrews 11:3B).

… God spoke and the invisible realm gave birth to all that is seen … what we see (with our natural eye) did not come from anything that can be seen.

Hebrews 11:3B (TPT, NLT)

In the realm of the unseen (or the realm of the yet-to-be-seen 😊, the realm of HOPE), there’s so much more than what we know or think we know – Jeremiah 33:3 … 1 Corinthians 2:10 refers to them as the profound and bottomless things of God; His inmost heart revealed to us by His Spirit (The God of special revelation to Jacob) in a firsthand, personal way … a one-on-one connection.

What eye has not seen, ear has not heard, and has not entered the heart of man – these are the things God has prepared (made and keeps ready) for those who love Him.
… by His Spirit and in a firsthand personal way, God reveals to us these profound realities – the bottomless things of God, His inmost heart and deepest mysteries …

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 (AMPC, TPT, MSG)
  1. The HolySpirit revealed the beautiful, eye-opening truth that Believing God is the place where God and I connect! It is the point where God and I touch – the touchpoint. It is how I actively connect with the God in me Who is also beyond me and otherwise out of my reach.

In believing God (like Mary 👉Luke 1:30-45), I become one with Him – my heart becomes one with His. This is the place where clay truly meets Potter (God).

Believing God is the first step of intimacy/fellowship with Him. It is the first step toward God …

Without Faith it is impossible to (walk with and) please God, for whoever comes to God must necessarily (first) believe that God exists … that He rewards (and cares enough to respond to) those who seek Him.

Hebrews 11:6 (AMP, MSG)

… it is required for every step thereafter. Believing God is an important aspect of our walk with Him – without it, there is no walk (Amos 3:3).

It is a privilege to believe God –Philippians 1:29(AMPC) … a privilege to touch God, to be intimate with Him, to walk hand-in-HAND with Him. It’s like the holding (together) of hands that happens when we pray – an agreement, a union … a connection … oneness.

HOW does the connection happen?

Answer: Through/By the HolySpirit.

… not by might, nor by power, BUT by My Spirit, says the LORD

Zechariah 4:6

Believing God is possible ONLY by the HolySpirit. It is not by choice – definitely not a self-executed choice. It is not by self-will, determination, or wherewithal, ONLY by the HolySpirit … it’s why He is sent(John 14:16, 16:7).

There’s been times I wanted to believe but wanting to did not auto-translate to actually believing God. Similarly, (in my experience) knowing that believing God is the way to go does not always auto-translate to actually believing Him.

While it seems like the simplest of things, believing God can (sometimes) be a struggle for the desperately wicked heart of man. Nevertheless, we are not without help – the HolySpirit enables and empowers us to believe. It’s His pleasure to do it for us 💖 … it’s why God comes –Exodus 19:9– why God visits (why He comes to connect). This also is why we must ask for the HolySpirit (Luke 11:13)and keep on asking UNTIL we are fully filled and perpetually overflow with Him … UNTIL we believe and keep on believing … UNTIL we connect and keep on connecting (an unbroken walk or companionship with God –Isaiah 30:18AMPC).

WHAT happens when this connection happens?

Answer: A perfect partnership is forged! And, ultimately, we see God glorified!

This place of unison and perfect harmony with God is where the magic greater works happen … where the naturally impossible becomes possible.

Case in point: Joshua 10 … I absolutely 💖 this story!

Quick 30-second background … Five kings gathered forces and went to war against the residents of a place called Gibeon because they had made peace with Israel. The folks at Gibeon called to Joshua for help … Joshua went to fight alongside Gibeon and against the 5 kings.

Fast-forwarding to the juicy parts 😊 …

(V8) God said to Joshua, Do not fear them, for I have given them into your hands … [In other words, it is DONE]

(V10) God threw the enemies into total confusion – He caused the enemies to panic before Israel, who slew them with a great slaughter …

(V11) As they fled before Israel … God cast great stones from the heavens on them – more died because of the hailstones than the Israelites slew with the sword!

(V12) … Joshua prayed to God in front of all the people of Israel; he said: sun, stand still at Gibeon, and you, moon, in the valley of Ajalon!

(13-14) And the sun stood still, and the moon stopped … the sun stood still in the middle of the sky, it stopped in its tracks and sat there all day, the sun did not go down for a whole day! There has never been a day like that before or since, when God answered such a prayer …

What a perfect partnership! Two hearts beating as one in perfect harmony! Joshua prayed and was in agreement with God’s will – 1 John 5:14-15. He was hand-in-HAND with God.

Did I not tell you that if you believe in Me, you will see the Glory of God (the expression of His excellence)?

John 11:40

Another case in point: Mary(Luke 1:30-45)– she believed God, became pregnant in a naturally or humanly impossible way, then gave birth to Jesus, the Glory of God(Hebrews 1:3) in human form – the expression of God’s excellence, the unseen God made seen! Mary believed God’s Word and thus gave birth to God’s Word (Jesus is the Word of God) – she birthed the Word of God that she believed!

Believing God– this place of perfect symphony, harmony, alignment, agreement –is where and how the unseen God is seen.

By Faith (which in turn births belief in God), Moses left the land of Egypt, being unafraid, unawed, undismayed by Pharaoh’s wrath … he never flinched but held staunchly … fixing his gaze on Him Who is invisible, as seeing Him Who is unseen.

Hebrews 11:27

It matters that we see God … it is a necessity that we see(k) God. Here is WHY: in see(k)ing God, we come to know Him personally and intimately. Knowing God is our greatest reward (Proverbs 2:1-6).

… I would not have told you to seek Me if I could not be found. I did not call you to a fruitless service, saying, seek Me for nothing (in vain or with no benefit for yourselves) – I promised you a just reward …

Isaiah 45:19 NLT, AMP, AMPC

Knowing God is LIFE – Real, Eternal Life (John 17:3B). This Eternal Life is to know (experience) the fullness of God by virtue of being one with Him. A life of utmost satisfaction … in this, God is most glorified!

Genesis 5:24 – Enoch walked with God and he was no more. One way to look at this is that he became one with God. Consequently, there was no telling him apart from God, The Unseen One! We see Him Who is unseen (yet ever-present) when we believe Him … when we are intimate with Him … when we connect with Him. Indeed, blessed are the pure in heart (those who believe – Romans 10:10A) for they shall see God –Matthew 5:8– SeLaH

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Abba, my Abba, thank You for the privilege to come close, to connect, and be one with You exactly as my Lord Jesus is! Let nothing separate me from You.

By Your Spirit, continue to open me up to You – that I may continually (now and through eternity) behold the beauty, sweet attractiveness, and delightful loveliness of Your Glory and Grace. Be everything I am. Be all I see and know.

Thank You HolySpirit for enabling me believe – thank You for doing for me what I inherently can NOT do. Continue to enable me to believe wholeheartedly, unreservedly, and always!

Rightfully Accused yet Righteously Vindicated

For my birthday this year, I asked God for Ephesians 3:19 💖 – to know the Love of God AND to be a body wholly filled with the fullness of God.

I wholeheartedly believe that the Holy Spirit led me to ask for this.

Since asking this, He has been opening me up to (and teaching me about) the Love of God – the experience and journey thus far has been life-giving, exciting, and dumbfounding!

Case in point – my most recent revelation and experience of God’s Love. It started with God’s response to a concern I shared with Him about a dream I had. The summary of the dream was that I was rightly accused of doing something wrong but there was no proof to support the accusation. I knew I was wrong, the accusation was right. The investigation was intense … there were witnesses but no actual evidence.

I woke up from this dream feeling a type of way – definitely not good. So I talked to God about it. I was worried that the dream depicted the possibility of me being found wanting.

In His response, God said to me:

” … they shall surely gather together and stir up strife to attack you, BUT NOT by Me – it is NOT from Me … nothing will come of their attempt … they will show to be in the wrong and will be dismissed as liars … every tongue that rises against you in judgement, you will condemn … you will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. This is your heritage – this peace, this righteousness, this triumph over opposition, is your heritage. This is the righteousness and vindication that you obtain from Me …”

Consciously, I applied God’s response to the relentless aggression of the investigator/investigation in my dream. I took His response to mean I need not worry about what my accuser does because it will be to no avail.

In retrospect, what I did not realize then was that, unconsciously, I utterly discounted the possibility that God was saying “Yes, you were wrong. Nevertheless I annul the rightful accusation of the accuser and declare you righteous”.

Clearly, I didn’t quite get what God was saying to me (at least not in its entirety). Sooooo, He told me again – this time through Zechariah 3:1-4

… Joshua the high priest, representing disobedient sinful Israel, was standing before the Angel of the LORD, and satan was standing at his right hand to be his adversary and to accuse him. And the LORD said to satan:The LORD rebuke you satan! Even the LORD Who now and ever has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you!Is this not the returned captive, a log snatched and rescued from the fire? Now Joshua was clothed with filthy (nauseatingly vile) garments and was standing before the Angel of the LORD. He spoke to those who stood before Him, saying: Remove the filthy garments from him. And He said to Joshua: See, I have caused your wickedness to be taken away from you … I have stripped you of your sin … I will clothe and beautify you with rich robes of forgiveness and in priestly clothes.

Zechariah 3:1-4

I wasn’t sure how to handle what I just read/saw. I was literally dumbfounded – my processor (human mind) froze … it could NOT compute!

Serves me right actually, I had no business processing the ways of God with my natural/human mind. Of course, it won’t make sense!

My heart believed (believes) the expression of God’s powerful love as depicted in Zechariah 3:1-4. It was (is) consistent with the things God has been revealing to me about Him. That said, my (conditioned) mind couldn’t quite reconcile this reality – the reality of the rightly accused being vindicated. It probably made a second attempt to dismiss this life-changing truth!

In trying to understand my response, I realized that my mind (very easily) was able to navigate being wrongly accused and vindicated but not being rightly accused and vindicated. It took a couple days and the grace of God for the latter to sink in!

Here’s a step-by-step personalized playback of what I saw in Zechariah 3:1-4:

I was in filthy (nauseatingly vile) garments YETGod let me in His presence. SeLaH – how many people would?

If I’m being honest, I most likely won’t let me in my own presence! Don’t judge me, I’m still a Work-in-Progress. Why do you think the HolySpirit keeps pouring God’s love into my heart Romans 5:5B 😊.

Here’s why God letting me in His presence, in spite of my filthy state, is particularly noteworthy: no one gains access to God except God grants it – John 6:44.

Blessed is the one whom You choose and cause to draw near (to approach You) …

Psalm 65:4

What a joyful privilege!

Playback continued …I was standing before El Roi and right next to me was the accuser. Whether or not he had proof of my wrongdoings was inconsequential. We were in the presence of the all-knowing, all-seeing God; He knew the accusation was right BUT He said to my accuser:I, the LORD, rebuke you. 😮 This right here was the part where it stopped making sense to my human mind!

For better contextual (and personal) understanding, I looked up the word rebuke and replaced the meaning with the word – here’s how it translates:God expressed sharp disapproval of my accuser’s right accusation! God disapproved of what my accuser was there to say/do (accuse me).

The case is closed … There is therefore nowno condemnation(no adjudging guilt of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus … those who belong to Him.

Romans 8:1

Alongside the rebuke, God reiterated and affirmed His stance regarding His choice of me! 💖

“… I choose her now and forever …”

Combining Ephesians 1:4 and Zechariah 3:2, it would read as follows:

“I chose her BEFORE the foundation of the world, I choose her NOW and FOREVER.” 💖

I wholeheartedly believe God affirmed His choice of me so I would hear it first hand and for myself.

He also went on to say:

“Is this not the returned captive, a log snatched and rescued from the fire? I reached in and pulled her out.” AMP, MSG

Dipping one’s hand in fire to pull out anything reflects care and unrelenting commitment (to say the least). In saying this, God expressed His love for me and the lengths He is willing to go for me (again) so that I would hear/know first hand and for myself.

… you are Mine …When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned or scorched. For I AM the LORD your God … your Savior. I paid a huge price for you (Isaiah 53) … Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you. That’s how much you mean to Me! That’s how much I love you! I’d sell off the whole world to get you back, trade creation just for you.

Isaiah 43: 1-4 (snippet)

Playback continued … Having done all these, God cleaned me up – replaced my filthy garment of wickedness with rich robes of forgiveness; He clothed and beautified me with priestly clothes – the garment of expressive praise instead of a heavy, burdened, falling, and disheartened spirit. Isaiah 61:3

As I pondered the truth and reality of the Love of God expressed in Zechariah 3:1-4, I saw (in a reinforcing way) that the MERCY of God is an expression of Who God is (LOVE).

Where is the god who can compare with You – wiping the slate clean of guilt … mercy is Your specialty …

Micah 7:18 (snippet)

Through Zechariah 3:1-4, I heard, saw, and connected with the Love, Mercy, and Peace of God like never before – it’s like I stepped into a whole new world!

A world where the Love of God (Salvation) has the final say. 💖

Being vindicated by a just God makes the vindication righteous, void of error, valid, and irrefutable – nothing and no one can gainsay!

… God has blessed, I can NOT reverse it.
He has NOT seen wickedness in Jacob (he is forgiven), nor has He seen perverseness in Israel (he is forgiven)…

Numbers 23:20B-21A

Oh the power, beauty, and salvation of (and that is) the Love of God! 💖

I continue to learn and experience that:

  1. The Love of God (God) is my Salvation. He is Yeshua!
  1. With God being my Savior and Salvation, I will always need saving (in some way or form).
  1. I can NOT save myself.

Compassion does NOT originate in our bleeding hearts, moral sweat, or the totality of human striving (effort), BUT in God’s mercy … It is NOT of the one who wills (who badly wants it) or the one who runs (who tries to earn it), IT IS of God Who shows mercy.

Romans 9:16
  1. The Mercy of God is my Salvation … I need only believe and receive it, no BUTs, no making sense (or trying to make sense) of it – ONLY believe and receive.

Guard and keep yourself in the LOVE of God, expect and patiently wait for and receive the MERCY of our Lord Jesus Christ which gives eternal life [to know God].

Jude 1:21
  1. No matter the wrongdoing … no matter the source of the accusation – within (1 John 3:20) and/or without (Isaiah 54:15, Revelation 12:10), going to God is my best next move. His presence is exactly and always the place to be, particularly when I fall/fail.

Let us then fearlessly, confidently, and boldly draw near to the throne of our gracious God that we may receive mercy for our failures, and find grace in time of need …

Hebrews 4:16

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To the ONLY God – my Abba, Savior, and Salvation. The One Who (through my Lord Jesus Christ and by His Spirit) keeps me from stumbling, slipping, or falling … Who keeps me on my feet, standing tall in His bright presence … The One Who (with unspeakable and ecstatic delight) presents me unblemished, blameless, and faultless before and in the presence of His glory – to You be is endless and ALL glory, splendor, majesty, might, dominion, power, strength, authority, and rule from before You created time, now, and for all of eternity. AMEN!

Thank You Abba for the PEACE that stems from Your love, mercy, and salvation – You are my peace, my righteousness, and my vindication. Continue to enable me to receive Your love, mercy, and salvation without hesitation or reservation. Help me to never disregard, take lightly, misuse, or abuse Your love, mercy, salvation, and grace – none of which is an excuse to sin. Thank You for loving me the way You do.