Category: Encourage

Look! The Kingdom of God!

The Kingdom is here, in the midst of you – inside of you.

Meditation Thought: “…behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:21)

Behold: Look. Notice. Observe! The Kingdom is here, in the midst of you – inside of you. The Kingdom is not outside of you and outside of others and near all of you – it is within each, and it is as a magnetic force drawing all together. As the parts of the Body of Christ are more closely brought to one another, so are they able to more capably affect healing and superb performance in one another.

Never fear to draw near to anyone – for it is the Kingdom within each which seeks to bring you to a person. Even though this may not be recognized by the other – yet – you can know the Truth and it makes you free to move everywhere without fear, and in confidence and joy and anticipation and hope and sure knowledge, in wisdom, and with love. Is this state of being not a perfect description of “The Kingdom”?

Authority Within

You do not know, as the Spirit knows, what is in their minds and their hearts.

Meditation Thought: “…do not be anxious about how you should defend yourself or what you should say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” (Luke 12: 11,12)

Prepare your mind and your heart attitude through diligent study of the Word, and worship and prayer that the way is open for the Holy Spirit to flow freely and unceasingly throughout every part of you: spirit, mind, body. In this way can the Spirit direct you how or what you are to answer.

The authorities of the world, though they know it not, have no authority over one who is filled with the Spirit. And you do not know, as the Spirit knows, what is in their minds and their hearts. Therefore, the Spirit must have full control of you in order that the Father’s will may be done to the glory of the Father, for working good for you and for giving opportunity to the authorities to come to the Father.

Falter not in hours or days, when life seems hard and stale,
But ingest the glory of the Word,
Transforming mind, and giving hope:
When the peaks and valleys come,
Then the Spirit follows each contour, great and small,
Aiding you, guiding you, protecting you.
For the Word in your mind has released the Spirit in your heart,
And the Spirit reveals to you the mystery, the glory –
And the unfailing sweetness of the Father’s love.

The Best Gift Ever!

You need only ask…

Meditation Thought: “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:13)

You delight in giving your children what you can, but your heavenly Father is able to give a gift ranking above all other gifts: the gift of His love and power actually transferred to be implanted within His beloved children. You need only ask and you will receive.

Fear Banished

You cannot fully concentrate on two opposites at the same time: therefore, if you focus clearly on God and His revelations you cannot at the same time focus on fear.

Meditation Thought: ““Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” (Luke 8:50)

“Do not fear” – do not look to anything but God – then you shall observe nothing to fear! Believe in God, seek to know God and make Him intimately involved in your life.

You cannot fully concentrate on two opposites at the same time: therefore, if you focus clearly on God and His revelations you cannot at the same time focus on fear.

Your choice of focusing determines your present appraisal of your situation as well as determining future situations. For “they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31)

The Paradox of Life & Joy

It is encased in the solid, protected container of love that we find courage to move into places we once feared.

Meditation Thought: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17)

The fullness of time brings the fullness of God: His Word fulfilled, His Will fulfilled, His Purposes fulfilled. The Creator must wait for the maturity of the created to fulfill the purposes of the creation – reflecting the meaning of life to both the creator and that created.

And so came the Word, the law, the grace, the truth all manifested in the flesh, that the meaning of life might be revealed fully to those who by choice and by faith, seek the light, seek the inner core as well as the outer surface, seek the unseen as well as the seen, seek the subtle as well as the obvious, seek to know with the heart as well as the mind, who seek God rather than be limited to being self-seeking.

For the paradox is true and to be understood: He who seeks to be last shall be first, he who gives of his life shall find his LIFE, and he whose purpose is to create happiness in the hearts of his fellow creatures, has happiness thrust into his own heart while his concentration is away from his heart.

JOY shall be his as he realizes the magnificence, the depth, the glory, the sweetness, the extent of the Father’s love for him – the lengths to which the Father will go to express that love with the show of the tiniest response to that love. The realization is awesome, fulfills the longing of the heart, bringing the ecstasy of long-awaited hopes and dreams being brought into reality; a confirmation of knowing what had only been sought.

It is encased in the solid, protected container of love that we find courage to move into places we once feared, where we once had no place, where we can now move effectively because we have the secret knowledge in our heart that whatever befalls us we are protected by love, insulated by it from undue hurt – we are equipped to do our task, and therefore confident as we move to do it: and this is the key to the task being brought to a successful conclusion (pleasing to the Father and the Son and the Spirit and the created).

Faith, hope and love responding to Love are the working of the Father’s will into all eternity; how can we refuse to be a part of that?!

Jackal, Ostrich or Chosen?

Behold, I am doing a new thing;
    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
    and rivers in the desert.

Meditation Thought: “Behold, I am doing a new thing;
    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
    and rivers in the desert.
 The wild beasts will honor me,
    the jackals and the ostriches,
for I give water in the wilderness,
    rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
     the people whom I formed for myself
that they might declare my praise.”

(Isaiah 43:19-21)

Jackals refers to deceitful people and ostriches to those who refuse to see the truth – but God’s righteousness and omnipotence will bring them to honor Him.

“Chosen people” – He would have all of His creation be His ‘chosen people’ – but some will not choose to be His chosen people and thus will forfeit that prerogative.

Joy in Constant Communication

Do you not see that it is the constant communicating that is My joy – and yours?

Meditation Thought: “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.” (Luke 15:31)

“Talk to Me, let Me know how you feel, what you think, the desires of your heart. Do you not see that it is the constant communicating that is My joy – and yours?

Do not be so engrossed in your work – even when it s the work I have given to you – that you neglect to seek My companionship.

For I desire to give you the things that will make you happy – not as if I were a clerk dispensing items impersonally – but as a loving daddy provides things he knows will bring delight to his child.

Ask for what you desire, let us think together on the merits of it, and the timing of receiving it – let us make our daily lives together precious in each other’s sight by constant sharing in all areas.

Do not be confused by the variety of choices I offer you, but rejoice in them, quickly singling out what is especially meaningful to you, and then those are the areas in which we will work closely together to bring mutual joy.”

Choose the Weight of Your Burden

The burden of sin is far heavier than the burden of the cross!

Meditation Thought: “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 4:27)

“To follow Me is to die to the self” – this is the cross to bear: the loss of “playing God” in your own life. At first the cross seems heavy – really unbearable – but as you persevere, the experiences serve as rough places which take off pieces of the cross, making it lighter and lighter.

The longer you follow Me, the more intimate we become, the dearer to each other, the more oblivious you become to the cross. You no longer are conscious of the cross, but you are conscious of Me and our relationship. You become so excited, enthused, fulfilled in our relationship and the activities we do together that you give no thought to the cross; it neither slows your movements nor occupies your thoughts. Your acceptance of the cross has actually resulted in a whole new dynamic, satisfying way of life.

Stand firm against any who would relieve you of the cross! If you relinquish the cross, you revert to your selfish, sin-burdened state, and the burden of sin is far heavier than the burden of the cross!

Gardening from Seed

The kingdom is available for the taking – and its very essence is to work good for many at one time.

Meditation Thought: “The kingdom of heaven… is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” (Luke 13: 18,19)

“A man took” – the man acted to take the seed given by God and place it where it would grow to his advantage and delight – fulfilling the purpose for which God had created the seed, fulfilling a need of the man, and fulfilling a need of the ‘birds’.

The kingdom is available for the taking – and its very essence is to work good for many at one time.

To live your life according to the laws of the kingdom is an assurance of growing good fruits for yourself and for others.

To the extent you know that a seed needs to be sown and cultivated to produce the best fruit, to the extent you make effort to provide what the seed needs, to the extent you thank your Father who provided the seed, your Brother who gave you the perfect instructions for its cultivation, and your Helper who enables you to carry out the instructions – to that extent will the tree thrive and provide the maximum for which it was created.

Seek knowledge, enjoy cultivation, anticipate the results, and the harvest shall be sure,  plentiful and pleasing.

Prepare for Joy

By adhering to your duty of the moment, you unknowingly prepare for yourself a joy in the future.

Meditation Thought: “You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Luke 12:40)

“Surprise, surprise.” And in an instant, every thought and plan you had is changed. For someone has, unknown to you, made plans which affect you greatly. Be prepared, even though surprised, for any event which comes to you by seeking the best precepts on which to base your momentary thoughts and actions. By adhering to your duty of the moment, you unknowingly prepare for yourself a joy in the future.

Look to the guidance of the Word, the Spirit, the circumstances, to make proper preparations for whatever may be in store. Trust that when you attend to your duties that you will receive your reward – sometimes in the pleasure of a peaceful conscience, and sometimes in a more glorious exciting event.