Intimacy: The release for Freedom.

     Surrender to the will of the Father releases supernatural deliverance. Every chain of sin and the weight of guilt falls to the ground as we open up our lives in every way to the Father of Lights to whom there is no shadow of turning. He is altogether lovely Holy and perfect. He requires a perfect sacrifice. How do we an imperfect people offer up a perfect whole sacrifice. It is by faith. Faith in the finished work of the cross. 

     Not only must we surrender to it but surrender every every every aspect of our hearts lives souls minds to him. Whom the son sets free is free indeed. Can you believe that today? Have you realized the power of the resurrected Life? They shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set them free. 

     As you walk closely to the Holy Spirit, and begin to know him intimately, he shows you things in your life that you must must surrender. Obedience in every area is not only vital to our spiritual walk, it can determine how far you will go with Him.

     Israel, God's people refused to obey. As God desired to to open the door to a greater walk through his law, they began to construct  idols for themselves and pine after the things they had forsaken to follow him.  Their hardness of heart caused them one of the greatest defeats in history. The loss of oppurtunity to know their Lord in the promise Land. 

   There are promises in the word, that God wants to release to you. He desires to fulfill each one, but there are areas in our hearts we must first conquer. Yes, he had given the promise land to the generation of Joshua. He promised his precious presence would go with them. (Joshua 1:9) They would possess the Land that was promised them from the beginning. But there would be specific instructions that would follow that  if not heeded to completion, could result in grand error. There is a freedom within our Lives that the Lord has given us and he shows us how to walk it out.  First, the Lord told Joshua to meditate on the Law day and night to observe to do everything in it, then  he would be successful in his pursuits to possess the land of his inheritance. (Joshua 1:8) Many Christians  fall short of inheriting the precious promises simply because they have become ignorant of what they possess in Christ. How is this done...losing intimacy with him. Intimacy was on the forefront of Joshua's mind. 

And all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshipped, each man in his tent door. So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tent.

 Exodus 33:11

    Moses was hindered as was his generation from entering in the promise Land due to disobedience.(Numbers 20:11) But the young man Joshua, had spent time in the presence of the Almighty and understood the Heart of God. As one begins to walk closely with the Lord, doors begin to open not only in the natural but in the supernatural. Doors and pathways that will lead to freedom if heeded. He will call you to release and lay things down bit by bit. It could be a stronghold from the past. A soul tie to another individual. Perhaps it is something as simple as a wrong perception, either of the past or what our future is to be. or maybe a friendship or relationship that is hindering you from a total focus on him. Either way it is only in a close love walk with the Lord that He can be given free course to speak and show us what is causing a blockade to walking in freedom. 

   All sin  was nailed to the cross and at that same cross we find we must let go burdens, handing them over to our Lord. It is to often we come face to face with the Lord Jesus Christ and we ask him " why have you not set me free in this area" but I must respond with another question. Has not Christ freely offered up Freedom? He has said you shall know the truth.  and the truth shall set you free. John 8:32 This is one of the most commonly quoted scriptures but to often we overlook the lines just before, which were spoken prior to this powerful statement. The  Lord says something that resonates and echoes  the instruction given to Joshua...

       Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free." Beloved, how can you know truth unless you first learn to be submitted to the Person of Truth.

     Almost identical to the wording used to give Joshua instruction to inherit the promise land :

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

    Joshua was to meditate on the Book of the Law. Jesus instructed the Jewish believers to hold to his teachings. Are you beginning to see it. Jesus said in Matthew 5:17 he was the fulfillment of the Law. In essence his word to the Jews was exactly what Joshua was many years before.  These words : Hold to my teaching, meditate on the law  day and night, are all relational descriptors. The success of  being set free was contingent on their direct relationship with Word of Truth.  As seen in history when the Jews attempted to obey a set of rules they failed miserably. But when the revelation of Christ has come, we find a Man in whom perfection is seen, one in whom the law was made complete. The Law Became a Person. The Lord invited the believers in to become his very own disciples.  To find freedom in their relationship with him. Herein was found the key to freedom. If you hold to my teachings, then you are my disciples and you shall know the truth and the truth will set you free!!!

Here are a few definitions of a disciple:

a. One who embraces and assists in spreading the teachings of another.

b. An active adherent, as of a movement or philosophy.

2. often Disciple One of the original followers of Jesus.

3. Disciple A member of the Disciples of Christ.

The American Heritage Dictionary

 

1. (Philosophy) a follower of the doctrines of a teacher or a school of thought

2. (Christian Religious Writings / Bible) one of the personal followers of Christ (including his 12 apostles) during his earthly life

[Old English discipul, from Latin discipulus pupil, from discere to learn]

Collins English Dictionary

Disciple comes from a Latin word meaning "learner" and discipline comes from one meaning "instruction, knowledge."

Farlex Trivia Dictionary

      In Matthew 28:11-12 the Lord exhorts us to come to him and Learn of him.

This my friends is a love relationship with our Lord, There are many believers and  many followers of Jesus but not many disciples. Not many are disciplined enough to know the truth and to be set free by it. This is a walk of give and take. A narrow path has been laid out for us. But it is not alone that we will find ourselves. The same power that conquered all, death hell & the grave, this same resurrecting power resides inside of you. As you put our Lord first obeying his every wish. As you draw closer to him, in spending time with him in his word and prayer you will begin to know his voice and what his desires are. Then as you know the Truth,  you will begin to experience the freedom  He has laid out for everyone. I leave you with this:

    Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light."

     Following Jesus is not burdensome. As you begin to delight yourself in him, you will find releasing all your burdens  to him brings such joy and strength. This love walk is unparallelled and all he asks is that you take that first step: Come.

My prayer for you today is that you truly experience the freedom that is found in this walk of obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ, who has brought an invitation to all generations that of which is to become His.  Perhaps you feel that whatever is hindering you  from knowing freedom has taken mastery over you. Remember you are no longer a slave to sin. Bathe yourself in the word of God. Humble yourself before him. Be honest transparent with your struggle. Whether its a thought, a habit, a holding on to the past. Release it to him by faith. Perhaps it will be a daily thing. But in the end you will find there is such grace and forgiveness in his presence, here you will be made whole. This my friend, is where you will find meditating on His word daily will cause rivers to flow from with in and you will find what once was an ash heap has been turned into something magnificent and beautiful. Only Come. Give it to him. Dance in his freedom walk in it run with it dive into all he has. Lay aside every weight of sin that so easily besets and run this race for all he has for you. This has been and is daily what I am now experiencing and I long for the whole world to know. Intimacy with the King brings freedom to be all he has called you to be.

Love and blessings always,

isa

Marvel in the Now...

         I realize it's been almost over a month since I last wrote. I feel time slipping through my fingertips and  am exhausted to say the least, however, My Lord has been there every step of the way. As of late I confess I  can often find myself looking all to hastily to the future, when in the now he Dwells. When my current circmustances do not add up to what I know my calling to be, there  can be certain  frustrations that threaten to take over and a tendency to want to rush time, or move beyond  this point to  the  next phase of life. But then how easily it can be to miss the lesson to be learned right where I am.
        There is a saying " The past is gone and the future is yet to be, but we possess a gift in the now simply called the present. Abraham's vision for his future was quite a vision indeed. But If it weren't for the moments in his life which wove the tapestry of this tale, there would be no lesson learned. We glean from this story because of every momentous encounter with God and with others. Inside every heartbreak and every dissapointment was found new depths of understanding otherwise hidden. Beloved, how many people base their entire existence in searching for what is found beyond their reach, only to look back to see a whole life has passed them by. Let this not be you.
             Take time to enjoy Him for he dwells in the now. Take pleasure in what he has given already. Not the highest of mountaintops, nor the greatest of success, can compare to the richness found in his presence alone. Delight in relationships  he has place in front of you. Invite someone to coffee or phone an old friend up. He longs for communion through your mouth to every person connected to you. How many will pine after their goals, when having arrived will only look back to see it was the steps leading them there that painted the lasting legacy and much of what will be remembered are the moments leading up to it all.
            I recently got the opportunity to hear ex-prime minister Tony Blair share at a business conference. I  am not on any political agenda here, remove that far from your thoughts. Albeit, he shared many  points on leadership that I found fascinating. One of the comments he shared comes to mind,  to be a leader in his stead he has come full circle to the realization, people are people in every facet and stage of life. Oftentimes, before he achieved his status, he would ponder over what these men of "high rank and esteem" might be like and how he would have to add up, placing them on another level,  finding in the end, not very different from himself they did not possess all the answers.  He came to understand that to walk by another world leader without having said hello, simply because he had much on his mind, could easily cause an offense. He quickly realized that in this arena of high influence, within the personal interactions between country leaders, was a potential to make or break an alliance with other nations.  In essence communication was key. This is vital to our walk with the Lord. "We can only know the value of cross when we understand the value of the person standing next to us." The sooner our goals become about people in the stead of seeking after the next"thing" itself, the closer we are to the ultimate desire the Lord possesses. That all men be drawn to the saving knowledge of Jesus is the cry of the Cross. Dont let one more oppurtunity to share the love of God with someone now. Learn the art of being instead of doing. Be his hands and feet now. Do not wait for the next amazing "ministry oppurtunity." or the next big break. or till you are in front of thousands. So much of how we are now in the little will determine much of where we will be later. Be faithful in the Little and he will give you much. Do not despise your small beginnings.
 To all future politicians just a side quip from Tony Blair: "Try not to make intentional enemies, you will make them often enough accidentally.";)

          When  we conceive that  life will always hinge on our relationships, we will better understand the importance and value of the now in context with one another.
          Marvel in God's creation and his blessing of life. Don't allow the circumstances of this world to steal your joy. There is a realm of God's peace that can be found in the midst of storms. Or perhaps your experiencing monotony, I exhort you to press in. Press in to see that just beyond lies a whole world of possibilities. Relish in where you are now, because if you are his then he promises his presence.  My presence will go with you and I will give you rest. Ex.33:14  "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Hebrews 13:5
And where he is, there is a" fullness of Joy." You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. psalm16:11

Encourage yourself in the Lord. Build yourself up in your most holy faith. Pray and Fight in the Spirit. Fight for the heart to love others and be touchable as our Lord was touchable. Do not allow self-preservation to rob you of the chance to be the healing balm to another broken spirit. Jesus said" he who loves his life shall lose it and he who loses his life shall gain it." I am experiencing this in my own life and favor is being shown on every level.

          That being said, I want to thank those of you who have said prayers for me. I have just finished my first quarter at my School of Worship. And oh, the powerful truths that have been unlocked within me. The beautiful people I have met, and the depth of Christ I have partaken of is beyond words. I came here quite the broken individual and I am quite another person indeed. And its only been a matter of months. How amazing it is to know that in his presence there is an exchange. I have found Him at my side every moment of every day. I am in anticipation  the best is yet to come, but till then I will worship him now and  minister to all who are in my path.
         My prayer for you today is that you encounter his presence in a greater way.  There is truly nothing that can compare, not the highest of mountaintops or the greatest of success, not people or places or things . It all pales in the light of Him who fills all in all. Take time to enjoy him, now. Love and blessings.-Coveting prayers always,
isa

It is beautiful how God has done everything at the right time. He has put a sense of eternity in people's minds. Yet, mortals still can't grasp what God is doing from the beginning to the end [of time]. eccl. 3:11