Meditations of Marie's Heart

Mom made this note before her “meditation thought”:

“I am to do what I can and not fret for God will do what I do not do – I cannot control circumstances a great deal, but I can live a righteous life, by God’s grace and power and my faith and obedience. I need not be concerned with details of how I am living a righteous life – only to look for God in all circumstances seeking His will and His way.”

Meditation Thought: “For the righteous man is taken away from calamity, he enters into peace. They rest in their beds who walk in their uprightness.” Isaiah 57:1a,2

Guilt is such a heavy burden that it destroys the joy of works and hinders the accomplishment of great works.

Yet God has provided a way for us to never have that burden of guilt for long – as soon as we repent – realizing we have been wrong, and desiring to be right(eous), He takes it from us. We are free to carry the lighter burdens of the duties of life, the works of God and discharging of our responsibilities.

If we labor under the burden of guilt, we are overtired from it, and cannot rest. But exercising in carrying our proper load – all we were meant to carry, in God’s perfect plan for us – we can rest in peace at night, knowing we accomplished our day’s tasks as we should, and nothing nags at us to interfere with our relaxation.

We can avoid guilt in two ways: by doing right, and by realizing that it is possible to correct our wrong actions, and then taking action to do so. This is the “priceless pearl”, the “treasure”  – it is what everyone longs for – the joy of clear conscience, and thus unfettered thinking and movement. Jesus bought this for us – He sacrificed dearly for it, and wants us to accept the gift, that His joy may be full in the giving – in this expression of His love for us.

 

“Thus says the Lord: Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed.”

“As a baby must grow and mature in order to comprehend who he is as a person, and who his parents are as his nurturers, so must a believer grow and mature to know who he is as an offspring of my Spirit, and who I am as the nurturer of his being.

Babies are inclined to get into all kinds of predicaments as they search for knowledge of the world and of themselves. Only the devotion of the parent keeps them from harm – or rescues them from their position of danger.

As the child grows, the more he is able to comprehend the love and devotion of the parent, the more he can understand the parent’s actions – even the actions which are not to his liking, such as denial of some of the child’s desires, and discipline for wrong-doing – then the more he can accept these with calmness and a lack of rebellion. In understanding and cooperating with the parent, the child creates a climate – a relationship – which enhances his maturity and furthers his growth into the character that is pleasing to both the parent and himself. With such a character, providing the parent is wise and knowledgeable, the child has what he needs to cope with all conditions he will meet in his life.

Be a perceptive believer – a perceptive child of mine. I will teach you the wisdom and knowledge which will enable you to cope with all conditions you will meet. I will not do this all ahead of time, however. You must trust me to know what to reveal to you before you have need for it, and what to reveal in the urgency of the moment.

You can remove fear and doubt from your life by trusting me, by believing in me and believing the communications which I give to you. Assume that everything which comes to light in my message to you – my lesson which you are to learn for your own immediate or future benefit.

If you will start to base all of your decisions on the premise that I am your loving Father actively guiding you into maturity and growth which will move you closer and closer to developing character which is like my character, you will release the power of the Spirit in your life as I have intended, and as Jesus demonstrated.

Truly accept my forgiveness of all that you have done which was not perfect in your sight or mine – as you forgive your children. Do not thwart the power of the Spirit by blocking it with guilt, unbelief, laziness or apathy.

The Spirit is released as you remove the blockage of the channel into which It desires to flow. As a physician through surgery clears clogged arteries so that blood may flow freely to give vitality of live, so do I clear your spirit when you place yourself before me, allowing me to operate – even if it is painful for a time.

Only as you believe in me, only as you trust me, only as you obey me, will you be free from fear and doubt, and find peace and fulfillment – wherever you are, whatever the circumstances may be, and whatever you are called upon to do.

I beckon to you – to love you.

I teach you – because I love you.

I need you – because I love you.

If I, who created you, am in such a state, what position are you in? Think, pray, be alert: Learn who you are, why you are, and what you are. When you recognize yourself as a part of me – and our mutual dependence upon one another, you will open yourself to the free flow of the Spirit and the possibilities of the kingdom now within you.

In the realm of the kingdom:

There is no fear nor doubt.

There is Love.

There is Beauty.

There is Service.

There is Satisfaction.

There is Peace.

There is Joy.

There is Hope.

There is Harmony.

There is the Fulfillment of all the longings of the heart.

Is this the place where you desire to live? Allow me to take you there. Believe I can. Trust I shall. Test Me! I have used every available means of encouraging you to do so, for how can I prove myself unless you give me opportunity to do so?”

 

 

 

Mom’s journal dated 3/30/1984

Ephesians 5:1-2

…be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Meditation Thought:

“Beloved children should be loving children – responding to the love offered to them. If the child responds in love to the parents, the child will be an imitator of the parents.

We need to remember our heritage as we go through life. We are not animals nor are we robots. We are beloved children of God the creator of the universe! : not to be “spoiled brats” – but to respond to Him in love, to please him – for in pleasing Him, we will be pleased ourselves, even when we are called upon Him to make sacrifices. For sacrifices are only the energies moving circumstances to bring desired changes – changes which move someone – perhaps many – closer to God the creator, closer to being an accurate imitation of Him. This movement of closing the gap between Father and children is the renewal for which all long – whether or not it is recognized that the renewal of our intimacy with the Father is the thing needed for satisfaction of our hunger. We realize that we need peace and joy. It is when we realize we are beloved children of the King of the Kingdom that we are able to find the way to that peace and joy.

Mom’s journal dated 6/22/1984

Isaiah 52:12-13

…go out… purify yourselves, you who bear the vessels of the Lord, for you shall not go out in haste and you shall not to in flight, for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard. Behold, my servant shall prosper, he shall be exalted and lifted up very high.

Meditation Thought:

“You bear the vessels of the Lord: Holy Spirit and Jesus – the person and personality of Jesus is present in you, and the power of the Spirit is in you. WHY BE AFRAID? WHY DOUBT? WHY CONSIDER YOURSELF UNABLE TO COPE WITH LIFE?

You have the Word of the Father, the presence of the Son, and the power of the Spirit with you at all times through your faith. Nothing evil can defeat this team! You may face evil and do battle with evil – but you shall not be harmed by evil. You are the temple containing the vessels of the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, and He shall not allow His temple to be destroyed, nor His vessels to be desecrated.

Do not focus on areas which confuse you – but on the wisdom which comes to you as you seek meaning in the right places – in the Word, in prayer, in loving service, in faithful actions.

Concentrate on the positive, eliminate the negative! You know which is which. The Word tells you, the Spirit tells you, your conscience tells you, circumstances tell you. In seeking the positive and forgetting the negative you will be transformed – as Christ was transformed by focusing on the power of the resurrection rather than the pain of the cross.

When you feel pain, concentrate on the coming resurrection power which will evolve when the circumstances move along to their conclusion!

Visualize healing, wholeness, holiness, beauty, love – all good things. Hold fast to the vision for it is the revelation of what I have gone ahead to prepare for you. I have prepared the kingdom; I take you to it in each circumstance. The circumstance is the way which must be traveled in order to reach the destination of the kingdom, that lovely place where you actually experience in every sense what you visualized through faith.

You realize by now that you live in multiple areas at the same time. As human events are varied, so are spiritual events varied. There are always projects in the planning stage, projects in the production stage, and projects in the completed stage.

You need to accept this and to appreciate each stage. Do not be discouraged by difficulties, for challenge serves two purposes: it inspires your mind and imagination, and it turns your focus to our relationship. It is through these factors that I am able to do My will freely, having received your consent and cooperation , and thus prosper you and raise you up. And then shall nations understand (Isaiah 52:17) through your devotion and obedience to me, the way, the Life and the Truth.

Each day will have its pain of the cross – but each day will have the joy of resurrection. While in pain, visualize the resurrection, and while in joy, be glad for the appearance of the pain which brought such an abundant harvest, which brought the reality of the kingdom.

In this way you can be thankful to me for all circumstances, and it is this key which opens the door of the kingdom upon which you knocked, that within the kingdom you have the gift for which you asked – a perfect understanding of our relationship of love and trust – the peace which you have sought.

When you are in pain, let me bring relief to you; through my Word, my Spirit – let me use the pain to bring forth new birth of an aspect of the kingdom. Do not abort the birth of something beautiful by lack of faith, or lack of labor, or lack of love.

The kingdom is to be born as an offspring of the world – through my faithful children, by my unbounding love and aid. Rejoice in your labor, knowing that it will produce the life which will give you utter joy.”

   no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,
    and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord
    and their vindication^[a] from me, declares the Lord.”

These are the thoughts Mom perceived as being from God the Father (6/27/1984):

“You must realize that despite the difficulties that Jesus encountered, He was always prepared for them. He had wisdom, strength and spiritual power to overcome every one of them – including death! In His teachings and in His life, which was an example of all He taught, He revealed the Truth of the nature I intended for my children to possess – if only they would choose to possess it, rather than to reject it by attempting to let self-will be their nature.

Do not strain so much in your walk along the way. You are focusing too much on the stones and steep places in the path, and not looking to the grandeur of the view – and to the excitement of reaching higher and higher places which will have views even more breath-taking.

When you read the Word, although Jesus and His followers did suffer from a misunderstanding world, how much did they talk about that?  – very little. Most of their concern was with the message – they had found a transformed way of life, and had a passion to share it. It brought them such fulfillment that nothing the world did to them could cause them to give it up, nor to stop recommending it to others.

Their devotion cannot be ignored. It is the very knowledge of the opposition to them – the intensity of it – that lends credence to their witness. If what they had found was not true – if it was not superior to ordinary existence, why did they suffer so to hold on to it, and refuse to deny it? They learned and grew in wisdom, in faith, in trust, in competency, in confidence, step by step – and that is the proper pattern for all to follow.

Seek my will for this moment, and do your best to be my obedient child at this moment; I have you in my loving arms. Only that which will further my purpose for your life – and for all of life – will be allowed to touch you.

Trust me. I conceived you in love; I teach you in love; I treasure your response of love. Fear has no place in such a relationship. Faith is one another’s love is the basis of the relationship. I need your love just as crucially as you need my love.

Don’t you see – I will not cause situations which will alienate your love for me. I will not treat you as a spoiled child and cater to your every demand, whether it pleases me or not – but I will seek to please you within the context of good parenting.

When you, as did Jesus in the flesh, catch the vision of the way things should be, the way they are in My perfect plan, and when you are so enthused about helping to bring that plan into an accomplished fact that you ignore all opposition, or turn it aside by the power I give to you – then you are in the process of being conformed to my character, rather than your own selfish character, or the character that the world would impress on you.

Doesn’t it make sense that if you were formed in my image, that any distortions which have occurred are better removed, even with pain, in order that you may return to that true image of your Father, who has no equal on earth or in heaven?

And if this is true for you, isn’t it true for all? Aren’t you willing to sacrifice some of your own preferences in order to bring more of my children into a realization of who their Father truly is, and what He desires to do for them?

I have tried my best to show how much I love you – to the point of doing almost everything for you that will assure your peace and joy – but one thing I cannot do – I cannot violate your free will, and force you to seek my will and do it even though I know that this is what will bring you your deepest heart’s desired fulfilled. Only you can have the faith in me great enough to seek my will and do it. Only you can decide to trust Me not to cause you harm. Only you can believe that I truly do love you, and that I created you to be the object of my love, and the delight of my heart. Only you can respond to such a love with a similar love. Only you can decide whether to welcome my  Spirit into your spirit. I stand at the door of the heart and knock – but I will not break down the door. Each one of my children must respond and open the door if I am to enter.

I know that I can bring good if I am allowed to enter. When my child knows, then is Truth perceived, the way perceived, and the kingdom come upon the earth as my Spirit communes with the spirit of my child, in harmony, in love, in mutual trust and mutual understanding. My Spirit is the ‘kingdom’, my child’s spirit is the ‘earth’. The uniting of the two is the fulfillment of the heart’s desire of both the Father and the child.”