The Wrestle

I have wrestled with God,
and do you know how He wrestled me down?
With love.

Two Kingdoms

This morning during my drive to drop off my youngest at playschool I had some very interesting thoughts going on. I'm not sure how it got started, but I began to think about how humans are hosts to spiritual beings, spiritual beings who want authority in the earth, but can only get it through an alliance and agreement with a human being. Truth is stranger than fiction. Why can't these beings just take what they want? Because the earth was given to mankind by God.

We abdicate our authority when we make agreements with the deceiver, Jesus Christ got it back for us, but we have to believe the keys exhist before we can use them. What we believe makes a world of difference. When I asked Jesus to come into my life and be my Lord and Saviour, I became His human host. This is why the Bible refers to the Church as the Body of Christ. When Jesus came into my heart and life He began to clean up any resident darkness, and so over the years, as I've surrendered to His process, I've become lighter as He cleanses this spiritual house that is me. The opposite happens when we let darkness in through agreements we make with the things of the kingdom of darkness.

During Jesus' ministry on earth He delivered some people by casting out the dark spiritual beings they were hosting. In one such story they begged Jesus to let them go into pigs, since they had to come out of the man at Christ's order. I gather that a pig host is better than no host, but the pigs rushed into the water as a result, and drowned. Eventually, the kingdom of darkness leads to death, sometimes slow, sometimes fast. Since God loves the world, He sent His son to deliver it from the kingdom of darkness. All who invite Him into themselves and submit to His transforming power, will prove it in increasing measure, by coming out of agreement with the kingdom of darkness and destroying the spiritual work, and thus the physical destruction, caused by that dark kingdom. We are to do this by loving people.

God is love. Satan cannot love. Not real love. If we cause factions and strife, if we make judgements and condemn people based on judgements, we have missed our true calling. If we need to be right, we've missed it there too. Wrong exists. It touches everyone, it hurts, it's painful, it's frusterating, especially if someone you love is being hurt. We are to protect the innocent. We are to set the captives free, to release the prisoners of darkness. We do that by shining the light of love and truth. The truth is Jesus, not a philosophy you smack people with. Jesus shed His blood for us. That is truth. When we invite Him in, we invite the dominant spiritual power of light to overtake the darkness, from the inside out.

Let There Be Light

I love the freshness and lightness of November, the wind sweeping away the old in preparation for the most beautiful time of the year, when we celebrate the Light of the world stepping down into darkness...

The Faithfulness Of The Paperboy

So I asked the Lord this morning how He wanted to speak to me. I then poured another cup of Starbucks, dark roast, into my thus branded mug as the words, “faithfulness of the paperboy”, crossed my mind. Nothing else was coming, so I was, like, really? And began to think about sitting outside on the front step, on this gorgeous morning, with my Bible. Then thoughts of, “rain or shine, the news gets delivered” and an image of my Macbook gets implanted in my mind. I imagined sitting in front of it, one sentence typed: The Faithfulness of the Paperboy. Period. Ugh.

Then a question pops in, “Do you have faith that I will give you the words?” Yes. Yes I do. But the subject sounds boring, to be honest, so I'm thinking (hoping) it's not You. Then I hear, “Obedience. Faithfulness. The paperboy delivers the newspaper rain or shine, because people need to read the newspaper”. Ahh... There is a flicker coming on in my lightbulb now, just a little bit. I go to my Macbook and start typing what I just typed and then it starts coming in.

It goes like this...

Do you know that every time the paper is to be delivered, it is, whether sun or rain or cold or heat? It may be delivered in a different style to adjust for weather and for the paperboy himself, but it gets delivered because people need to get the newspaper. Some people read the whole thing through, some only read the sections they enjoy, some don't read it at all because they assume they won't enjoy it or need anything from it. Regardless of what gets done with the paper once it's delivered, the paper gets delivered.

Do you think the paperboy enjoys his job? Perhaps on days when the temperature and weather co-operate and on the days he gets paid the fruits of his labour and when he is commended or awarded by his boss for a job well done. But many days it is tiring, cold, wet, and the only things that keep him going are the hope of a promise fulfilled. Even more than his commitment. It's the promise that keeps him going. The promise that comes from his boss. The promise that this will be a good thing for his resume, a stepping stone to something bigger... (be faithful with little and I will put you over much, rings in my brain). What keeps him going does not originate with him, nor does it affect him alone. It relies on others and it impacts others.

Promise and hope. If that can be crushed in your enemy, you have won the war. Who is your enemy? And where is he crushing your hope and trying to destroy your promise? Where is your hope and what is the promise? Who gave you the promise and what does it whisper about your destiny that you have invested hope into. Where are you under attack? It is deeper than your soul. It is your spiritual DNA and your soul and body are designed in harmony with that spiritual DNA.

You have a destiny to tread upon the enemy of your promise and hope, not just for your sake, but for all the ones you are called to deliver to. Persevere. Draw on the support systems that you need to see that the mission of why you are here, does not miss you.

You are significant. Any voice that says otherwise is lying.

Do what it takes to be the fulfillment of the promise that is stamped into your spiritual DNA. Life is short, life is also full of second and third and fourth chances. Get over yourself. Humility is a huge weapon in your arsenal, that is too often underused. Stop blaming others, that cripples you, and hinders others. Reach out for what you need to find out what your promise is, how to get back on track. There are people waiting for what you will deliver.

How many have passed up a [paper route] because it was boring, tedious, beneath them, didn't pay enough or uncomfortable? How many leaders, and movers and shakers today, had paper routes when they were young? Don't despise the day of small beginnings, because the character it builds is a foundation on which a greater structure can be built. That greater structure is your promise. There is no fast track. But there is hope. Do what it takes to get back on track.

Your promise is waiting.