Right? Or Listening!

All my life I have striven to do and to be right. To have the right doctrine, right attitude, right view on everything. It got so bad that I forgot what's important. That the number one thing in life is relationship. First to God then through Him to others. That realisation led me to jettison my law-based religion for a love-based relationship. It's been a wonderful, but painful journey.

The problem is I have lately realized that even my seeking for a different kind of relationship with God was rooted in striving to be more "right" (read: righteous or self-righteous) than before.

So, I'm now beginning to ask myself, "Am I listening to the Holy Spirit or am I listening to myself and my obsession with "rightness"?" Since God graciously has revealed so many things to me, I thought I should take those God given ideas and revelations and made them my measuring stick. The truth is, I shouldn't have a measuring stick of any kind! That very idea is what led to our downfall in the garden (original sin). Adam and Eve were insistent on knowing good and evil instead of relying on God to direct them. So, because of their fall, we are constantly asking "Is this right or wrong? Good or Evil? " Going back to relying on God's voice, listening to what the Holy Spirit says in this moment, should be my goal. Not sticking to some idea or revelation He had given to me or others previously. I've been making my revelations into a brass serpent* (see scripture below). Taking what God had previously given for healing and blessing then making it something to be worshipped as "the revelation from God". The very same thing I've been nattering about, which is using the Bible in place of listening to God's voice, is exactly what I've been doing. I've used what He's revealed to me previously to make decisions on present situations. The Lord wants me to listen at all times, to "inquire of the Lord" in all situations. Sometimes, often actually, He will lead me to the Bible, or to a previous word or revelation, but first, first I need to ask Him!

I Cor. 4:20 - For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power.

The kingdom of God is found, not in my, or anyone's, ideas or revelations . The kingdom of God, the place where you will find the King, will be found only in the words or actions given present life and power by His Holy Spirit. I don't want to be one who says a plethora of wise and spiritual sounding words, but no power or life coming from those words. Even if those very words once had power, they probably don't now. The definition of the word "Vanity"** comes to mind, something that seems to be important but is full of nothing.

I don't want the Lord to say "do this, or go here, or say that" and I say " but God, you told me something different before, which is it?" God is saying "I exist and speak in the now. My words are fresh and alive, full of power and might. Yesterday's words and revelation belong to yesterday."

Dear Lord help me to say "yes and amen" to anything you ask. To listen in the moment, and flow with You.

Listen to a great song by Matt Redman - Yes and Amen ( on youtube)

Hear Your people saying yes,
Hear Your people saying yes to You.
Yes to anything you ask,
Yes to anything we´re called to do.

Hear your people say amen,
Hear Your people say amen to You.
Let Your kingdom come on earth,
Let it be just like we prayed to You.

Yes and amen to everything that´s in Your heart,
Yes and amen to everything that You have planned.
We live to see Your will be done,
And see Your perfect kingdom come on earth, on the earth.

Yes and amen, we´re taking up our cross for You,
Give us the strength to take these dreams and follow through.
We live to see Your will be done,
And see Your perfect kingdom come on earth, on the earth.

All the promises are yes,
All the promises are yes in You.
Every good and perfect gift,
Every blessing that we have was You.

*Numbers 21:8&9 - Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live." So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

2 Kings 18:1,4 - Now it came to pass...Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign.

He removed the high places and broke the sacred pillars, cut down the wooden image and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it, and called it Nehushtan.

**Vanity (noun) - the quality of being worthless or futile

Being Verses Doing

And be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; - Philippians 3:9

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! Rm 6:15

How do we know if our righteousness is by faith or, our own, from the law?

I think it comes down to being instead of doing.

To trip and fall and injure ourselves so that we must grovel and lie in the dirt until a good samaritan shows mercy and helps us up, is much different than to throw oneself down in the dirt, pretending to be in the same state as the former, trying to evoke pity from the good samaritan. One is being while the other is doing. They both look the same, but come from a totally different paradigm. One is accepting the mercy of another in our circumstances, the other is manipulating another to pity for our own purposes. One is spirit, one is flesh.

Conversely abiding in Christ, shown by what we do and are naturally, verses doing "acts of righteousness" as proof we are righteous. For example, a car engine that passes the emissions test because the owner (Christ) keeps it in tune by regular maintenance, verses putting a filter on the tailpipe to filter out the poisons that are there because of a faulty engine. The emissions test results may be the same, but in reality, the engines are totally different. Being and doing. The first car is clean and therefore runs clean and any tune-up that is needed will be done by the owner (Christ). The second is not clean running and manipulates the emissions test by putting a filter on the exhaust so as to pass the test, thinking passing the test by any means (acts of righteousness) is proof of a good, clean running engine (true righteousness). Not realizing that it is the owner's (Christ) job to keep the car running in tip-top shape, not the car itself!

I believe that God does not want us to "act righteously" to be a good example, any more than He wants us to sin to show others how gracious He is. All He wants is for us to be found in Him. Exactly who we are, nothing more, nothing less.

He wants to be our righteousness and show us His mercy and grace. Not for us to be manipulators. Just be yourself.

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's judgment. For since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God--all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God. - Rom. 5:8-11

Looking Back to look ahead

I would like to start the new year out, not by looking ahead, but looking behind. I want to remember some of the times when the Lord heard my cries, and answered. I want to muse about the goodness shown, not about my yet, unfulfilled promises.

I first think about the little girl who asked God for money for camp and He supplied. Not a big deal, but it set the foundation for my belief that God does hear and answer prayer. I think about the time God rescued me from being raped or worse when I was 15 in Salem, OR.; The many times I didn't even have enough sense to know what kind of danger I was in, but He rescued me anyway (I know my parents were praying, thanks Mom and Dad); About the strength He has given me over the many years of my first marriage, to carry on in spite of a broken heart and deep loneliness. How He was my resting place and gave me hope and life in spite of it all; How God rescued my son, many more times than I know, from death and destruction. He has had His hand on Ty for all his life. First rescuing Tyler from drugs, than cancer. In their place, giving him a wonderful wife and an adorable daughter; How God had protected my daughter Katy, like He did me, from dangerous situations where she should have had harm come to her, but didn't. How the Lord rescued her from an emotionally abusive first marriage, giving her back her hopeful spirit. Not letting it be crushed beyond repair. Bringing her beauty for ashes in the form of a loving husband and beautiful son; How my Lord has brought me a love that I prayed for, not knowing what form it would take, but knowing how faithful God is, He answered my cries. God gave me a wonderful loving husband who adores me, and whom I adore. I now rise in joy and lie down in peace. God is good!

All this to say, you can only access the many blessings God has in store for you, by remembering, acknowledging and thanking Him for what He has already done.

I thought about the former days, the years of long ago;...I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds.

Ps. 77:5;11,12.

Praise you Lord God Almighty for your many gifts, especially for your son Jesus!

Happy and Blessed New Year to you all!