When God is the teacher you better listen.  I am learning to do that skill a little better everyday.  However, some things take a few hours or even a day to sink in.  I know I am covered by Christ and that the Holy Spirit is guiding me in almost every area.  There was something that popped up when chatting with a friend of mine.  He asked a question and said it was placed on his mind a few times by God.  I was able to answer the question with conviction, but there was some doubt within.  It is amazing that as my mind is being renewed and my time is devoted to Christ I still attempt to deceive myself into keeping something I like.  Even though it isn’t a bad thing I am still holding onto the thought like it is mine.  This has to be surrendered and given to Christ it is the only way that I can completely say I am devoted to him fully.  There have been huge blessings and soul shattering changes in my life recently and I need to be mindful of these changes and look way deeper into each one.

Jesus has blessed me in so many ways, more than I will ever realize, but mainly because I am still here and living, even though, without him I probably wouldn’t be.  He has placed people in my life who are significant growers of my soul.  These types of relationships are vital to each of us, but more importantly we must get on our knees and lift up each one of those relationships and ask God to reveal its purpose.  This way we can stay peaceful as we learn it is in His Mighty Hands!  What I am learning is when I have hope in anything other than Christ that “anything” can become an idol, almost unknowingly.  A land mine waiting for me to step on because of my own selfishness.  When we see something or experience something good, our human nature automatically desires more of that good thing.  It can be dangerous, even as I am close to God, because you can fake the funk and make it seem he is blessing what “I want”, when in fact it just may be a blessing of paths crossed.

Jehovah Jireh is one of my favorite Hebrew sayings ” The Lord will provide” or ” The Lord will see to it.” We see this in the story of Abraham and the command from God to kill his son.  Let that hit your head, KILL HIS SON.  Abraham in all his feelings of not wanting to do this, surrendered, lifted his knife and was prepared to take his sons life.  He knew that God had provided for him and if this was what he wanted he would continue to provide.  You see God provided for Abraham what he thought was impossible so in his gratitude toward God he was committed to God.  He understood!  It was in his conviction and commitment to God that made him ready to carry out that task.  Thankfully, it was only a test and he did not have to take his sons life.  I am thankful my task is nothing like his, but it will be painful for me, but necessary.  The only way to live by saying Jehovah Jireh is through conviction and commitment to Christ.  There are things the Holy Spirit has placed on my heart that I have “my hope” in and not leaning on HIS Hope for me.  The hopes I have are not bad and are actually healthy one’s but they are about me and not God.  The reason it is so hard to let go of “my hope” is because honestly I have never had them and they are good.  This does resemble my battle with my sinful nature because it deals with self and not soul.  In order to move forward with my love affair with Christ at the center I must suffocate “my hopes” and desires and wait on Him to provide.  You see, my dear friends, He is the perfect one and that includes God’s timing.  However, with me being so new to this healthy way of thinking, it’s hard for me to see something So Good and it not be So Good! It is in that goodness that reveals to me my problem and forces me to be honest with myself.  I have to completely stop interfering with God’s plan and just follow! I gotta realize he doesn’t need any of my directions or suggestions!

I am ready to do this but not looking forward to the pain, but I am looking forward to how God will embrace me in this true surrender.  Hearing God’s voice is AWESOME and it was something I thought I would never be able to do but in my quiet time, as I was silent, He spoke the hard truths.  The main focus and beauty of this is even in the hard truths, and the pain I know is to come, and the questions of ” are you sure, God?” No sin or temptation has come near.  PRAISE BE TO GOD!  I just wanted to make sure and share this battle as this is a good one.  This is not good vs evil, but a conviction of my soul renewed to complete a covenant made between me and the Lord.  I must follow his terms of this contract and stop trying to add my own clauses to it.  Pray for me that God would prepare me to do this well.  JEHOVAH JIREH! Yes He Does! My Faith is in him and no longer “my hopes!” Amen

One Love, One King, All Christ!