The day that I realized I was completely secure in my relationship with my Creator and had no more shame for just being human, with all my accompanying sins, I realized I could just REST in the presence of Yahweh and be at perfect peace with all the attending power and authority He gives His children. That’s also called grace. No need for tears, no need for prostrating myself in false humility, no need for emotionalism, no need to search for crazy experiences.
THAT was amazing. All those years of striving, hoping I could be good enough to come into the presence of the One who created and loved me… Could it be this easy to be so free, set at liberty to run in the path of Yahweh’s commands? Sounds like an oxymoron, right? But it’s so true. When you lose your life for the Gospel you find it! When you tell your soul to stand down and let the spirit in you that was placed there by your Creator have complete reign, you’re practicing the presence of Jesus/Yahweh. It’s living the not-so-trite verse that says, “Be STILL and KNOW that I am God.” Psalm 46:10 No striving allowed!
But hold on, Hebrews 4:9-11 says this: “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest…” (ESV) We’re supposed to REST in Yahweh’s love and REST in the finished work of Jesus on the Cross where He attained our liberty to have relationship with our Abba again. But
it seems funny that we have to labor, or strive, to get to that point of rest.
Ah, yes, it does take time to figure some things out like this. I’m in my 60s and finally understanding a bit of what it takes to nestle near the heart of Abba, feel His heartbeat, breathe in His breath, and hear His song. The light has been within me all the time, but since I’ve told my mind that the spirit is in control, the light can shine much better! That is my goal: that Jesus gets bigger in me every day and comes through every gateway I have. Want to know what gateways those are?
God inside you, the glory, is at the core of your being. The gateway of your first love is where He moves into your spirit. The spirit’s gateways are prayer, reverence, faith, hope, worship, revelation, intuition and fear of God. Then God can move from your spirit to your soul whose gateways are conscience, reason, imagination, the mind (including conscious, subconscious and unconscious), emotions, choice and your will. Moving through those gates God can touch your body with its five senses/gateways and move out of you to the world outside. This is how you bring the Kingdom of God to your sphere of influence. You move in the authority of your position in Christ as well as your earned authority, being a faithful steward of all that with which He has blessed you.
Life is more than a journey. It’s a NOW experience. I hope you can find your rest in the arms of the One who loves you more than anyone could ever love you. Enjoy listening to the Father sing over you a beautiful song of acceptance and peace. He actually JOYS over you, busting out in song over you! (Think Broadway musical!) So, listen to His song. Breathe Him in when you’re doing daily chores, taking a walk, nursing the baby, or washing dishes. Tell your mind to enter into that rest where the spirit takes control and opens the gateways to the presence of God flooding your surroundings. I pray you REALIZE all that God has for you in His outstretched arms.