Practicing His Presence

Encouraged by a friend’s mention of it, I dug through my collection of books to find a yellow-paged copy of The Practice of the Presence of God, by Brother Lawrence.  I’m sure I have read this book before, but it seemed brand new this time around.  I am definitely in a different place spiritually, so the words of this book are like a breath of fresh air, encouraging me to pursue the Lord so I might know Him more – yet without the old feelings of guilt because I’m not there already, followed closely by condemnation saying I never will be.

Brother Lawrence lived and wrote in the 1600’s, but Whitaker House Publishers has done an excellent job of updating and clarifying the language for people like us not only to read, but comprehend, the riches contained within the pages of this book.  It is primarily an autobiography, yet Brother Lawrence wanted so much to keep the focus on the Lord that he wrote as did Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:2,  “I knew a man . . .”   This does not at all detract from the message, but accomplishes the desire of Bother Lawrence’s heart – to glorify the Father.

From the very first chapter, a desire was ignited to begin practicing the presence of God as I haven’t to this point in my life, simply because of the Truth so obvious in Brother Lawrence.  In addition, my thinking was challenged by such statements as:

“. . . we must give ourselves totally to God, in both temporal and spiritual affairs.  Our only happiness should come from doing God’s will, whether it brings us some pain or great pleasure.  After all, if we’re truly devoted to doing God’s will, pain and pleasure won’t make any difference to us.”¹

“. . .God has infinite treasures to give us, he says.  Why should we be satisfied with a brief moment of worship?  With such meager devotion, we restrain the flow of God’s abundant grace. . .”²

Despite the challenges, I wasn’t condemned as I considered my life against his.  Instead, the Lord reminded me that He hasn’t called me to live the same life, in the same circumstances.  Rather, He has called me to live the same consecrated life in total pursuit of His Presence, in my circumstances, so that, “acting with childlike simplicity in God’s sight, he did everything for the love of God, thanking Him for His guidance.  And everything He did passed calmly, in a way that held him close to the loving presence of God.”³

It’s the simplicity of the Truth that has stirred such a yearning in me for life in the continuous awareness of the Presence of God.  It’s not a set of rules or steps by which I can attain this position.  It simply begins with the understanding that it is possible.  It’s not a pipedream.  It has been done before, as a human being yielded his life to God.  Brother Lawrence spoke of practicing the Presence of God.  It does take practice, but the more it is done, the greater the hunger, which leads to even greater practice.  Yet it isn’t practice for the sake of practice, but practice with the goal of developing an ever-increasing intimacy with our heavenly Father.  That, my friends, is worth every bit of effort.  But don’t take my word for it.  Find a copy of The Practice of the Presence of God and let the Lord draw your spirit to His as you meditate on its words.

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¹Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God (Springdale, PA:  Whitaker House, 1982), 8.

²Ibid., p. 26-27

³Ibid., p. 16

Just One Drop

I offer in this post a little twist to typical Thanksgiving messages, though it is written to elicit effusive thanks to our wonderful God.  I hope by now you know me well enough to expect nothing standard from me, no matter the season!

As I prayed with some friends recently, we saw something of Jesus’ actions on the cross that caused us all to respond with shouts of thanksgiving and praise.  I don’t know that it was a brand-new, never-heard-before kind of thing, but somehow it became real to us in prayer as it never had before.

Our prayer was for the body of Christ to know the love of God, to experience it the way He gives it – lavishly.  That word, lavishly, was very important.  When I think of a lavish feast, I think not only of top quality foods prepared by the best chefs, but of heaping platter upon heaping platter on table upon table, with nothing running out – ever.  If a parent lavishes gifts upon their child, there are so many presents that the child cannot possibly take advantage of them all.  Even that, however, doesn’t come close to what God has done for us in sending His Son Jesus.

How could Jesus, the Lamb of God shed His blood for us, covering all sins for all time, when the lambs sacrificed for sins as a ritual act year after year never could?  It all had to do with what was in His blood.  Because He knew no sin, the quality of His blood was perfect.  With that being the case, only one drop of that perfect, sinless blood was required to pay for all sin for all time.  Just one drop covered them all.  But Jesus shed all His blood for us.  All!  He gave more than the basic requirement.  When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, He poured His love out for us lavishly.  It was almost as if, in giving it all, in abundance, lavishly, He shouted a shout that continues to this day to those who will hear:  “I love you!  The price for your sin is paid beyond its cost.  You are worth it all and more!  I love you!  I love you!”  It reverberates across the miles, across the centuries, across the cultures, throughout the entire world.  And this message is not for the masses, but for every individual.  It’s for you, too!  Receive the lavish outpouring of His love for you today!

Romans 5:16-17 NIV  ¹⁶ Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. ¹⁷ For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 2:12 AMP  Now we have not received the spirit [that belongs to] the world, but the [Holy] Spirit Who is from God, [given to us] that we might realize and comprehend and appreciate the gifts [of divine favor and blessing so freely and lavishly] bestowed on us by God.

Follow Me As I Follow Christ

1 Corinthians 11:1 AMP  Pattern yourselves after me [follow my example], as I imitate and follow Christ (the Messiah).

Paul spoke this sentence to the believers in Corinth.  Paul – the one who has been portrayed by many teachers and preachers through the years as proud and arrogant.  Paul – the one who has been made out to be a chauvinist.  Paul – who went after Christians in every way he could, even going so far as having them killed, attempting to stop the spread of the gospel prior to his dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus.  This same Paul has the audacity to say to believers to pattern themselves after him as he imitates and follows Christ.  How dare he say that?!  Would a humble Christian say that?!

Paul’s confidence appears to many to be self-confidence.  His boldness to declare in Acts 20:26, “I am innocent of the blood of all men,” looks like an outright lie to those who know his past.  That’s what stops most of us from telling others that we are innocent, or to follow us and imitate our example as we follow Christ.  We know the wrongs of our past, and we know others know them, too.  We would never consider ourselves good enough, pure enough, or righteous enough, so the last thing we’d want is for others to imitate us.  But is that what we are to consider?

Paul was not deceived, in denial, or suffering amnesia.  He practiced what he taught, and he taught what the Lord taught him – that we are to leave the past behind (even the positive) and press on toward the mark (Phil. 3:13-14).  He understood that when Jesus forgave His sins, they were no longer to be his focus, as they were truly washed away by His blood.  He needed but to go forward in the Lord, seeking to know Him more and to make Him known (Phil. 3:10) – not continually re-examining past sins, or receiving the judgments of others who wanted to do so.

When Paul called others to imitate him, there was no pride or self-confidence at all.  There was complete confidence in Who Jesus Christ is, knowing the power of the Holy Spirit alive in him, enabling him to follow Christ and lead others in the same way.  He knew the authority and the righteousness of Christ in him, and that God saw him as righteous because of Christ.  His focus was not on his sin, but on the completeness of Christ in him, Who is so much greater than all sin.  Jesus called Paul to follow Him and become His disciple, so he chose to do likewise.

As believers, we can have this same confidence in Christ – this same boldness to call others to follow our example.  It comes from focusing on our risen Savior, not on our old, fallen nature.  It also comes from believing the Word.  We have a new nature.  We are God’s righteousness, risen with Christ, seated with Him in heavenly realms.  It is not based on our feelings, but on His Word and what He has done.  He did it for Paul.  He’s done it for us.  Making disciples means giving them an example to follow.  So, like Paul, we can choose to say, “Follow me, as I follow Christ.”

Not Even For a Few Minutes!

1 Peter 5:8 Be well balanced (temperate, sober of mind), be vigilant and cautious at all times; for that enemy of yours, the devil, roams around like a lion roaring [in fierce hunger], seeking someone to seize upon and devour.   AMP

I had a dream the other night that disturbed me, partly because the situation was upsetting in the dream, and partly because I’ve had several dreams with a similar theme.  I have known they were from the Lord, but this time I not only wrote it in my journal, I waited on the Lord for the interpretation.  He’s been trying to show me through these similar dreams something to which I’ve paid no attention until now; yet, in His amazing patience and love, He alerted me once more so that I would hear and heed.

I share the dream with you, and the interpretation the Lord has been unveiling to me, because I sense it’s something He wants to reveal to many in His body so you will also recognize and avoid the trappings of our enemy.  I do not yet understand the meaning of all the details of this dream, but the Lord has revealed enough of it for the overall picture / lesson to be evident.  The dream follows:

I am driving a white van and no one is with me.  Though I apparently know where I am and where I am headed in the dream, it isn’t plainly stated.  I stop at a fast-food restaurant (seems to have been Arby’s), lock the van, and go inside for just a few minutes.  The parking lot is fairly large and fairly full.  I don’t have to park a long distance away, though I am not parked next to the building, either.  When I come out of the building, my van is gone.  Someone has stolen it.  Even in my dream, I am telling people this has happened so many times.  End of dream.

For the interpretation, God has pointed out one piece of the dream at a time for me to consider, starting with the van.  It’s not always a van that gets stolen in my similar dreams, but it is always my vehicle – my means of transportation to get from one place to another in the natural.  Spiritually, I believe it represents a revelation of God that is to move me from one place to another in Him.  Just as there is definite plan and purpose in what I am doing in the vehicle in my dream, there is also definite plan and purpose in where God would have me go in the spiritual realm.

It was very clear in my dream that I had locked the doors (and closed the windows) so no one could get in.  The van was only out of my sight for a few minutes, yet the thief was still able to come steal it, in broad daylight in a well-occupied lot, without anyone noticing anything.  How does the enemy still have access to this vehicle when I’m making it secure?  Moving this into the spiritual, I am on the way in God and protect that which He has shown me.  But I leave it – even for only a short time – and that opens the door, somehow, to it being stolen from me.

Since my vehicle is never returned in these dreams, my journey is seemingly ended.  The dream always ends with me in the parking lot, greatly distressed with no idea of what to do.  I believe the Lord wants me to see that my spiritual journey has been interrupted (not ended).  This really resonates with me, because I seem to keep running up against some obstacles repeatedly, though I have thought they are in the past.  I’ll have a revelation of the Lord and begin to move forward in greater freedom in Him for a time, with a sense that these hindrances are finally behind me.  Suddenly, seemingly, I’m right back in those familiar circumstances, at a dead stop – journey disrupted.  How did I let that freedom slip away?

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy . . .

The quick stop at Arby’s, for fast food that is not good for my natural body, represents some quick stops or side trips I have made, apart from the Lord’s direction, that are not good for my spiritual condition.  In the dream, my eyes were only off that locked van for a few minutes, but that’s all it took.  I left my vehicle, and the enemy took advantage of it.   Perhaps it would have been as simple as having someone with me in the vehicle who could have stayed with it while I took what was perhaps a needed break, rather than trying to do it all alone.  Likewise, in the body of Christ, we are called to come alongside our brothers and sisters.  The flip side is that we are also called to have brothers and sisters alongside us as we go on the course God has designed for us.  That’s a big “ouch” for me!

Besides trying to do it myself, what draws me out of the vehicle God has given me?  It is just enough for the enemy to seize the opportunity and stop my forward progress.  After all, I am coming back to it.  The Holy Spirit helped me see that I’d let doubt creep in.  I began to entertain old ideas and religious mindsets about the revelation the Lord had opened to me that had set me on this wonderful course of freedom.  It only took a little bit of that junk food to steal my spiritual health.  Both in dream and in spirit, I thought the vehicle was safe and secure, but I didn’t stay with it, and the enemy was able to come in and snatch it away.

How wonderful our Father is!  He hasn’t been giving me these dreams to condemn me, but to convict me of things that keep me from fullness of life in Him!  If He had been like we are so often, He would have quit trying to get it across.  Glory to His Name!  That is not His nature at all!  I know that vehicle has been brought back to me in the goodness, grace, and mercy of our Lord.  I’m not waiting for another dream to confirm it, for He has already picked me up and set me back on course, moving forward in His freedom so that I might continue to carry that freedom to others who need to know Christ!

Jesus finishes John 10:10:  “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

Follow Me

In a conversation recently, someone shared their concern about a grown child who had been raised in church but left for college decades ago and lost all interest in the things of God.  The person was quick to add that this child was “a believer.”  As I pondered that phrase and reflected on similar stories worldwide, with different details, something became clear.

Believing is necessary, but it is only the beginning of faith.  After all, in James 2:19, it says:  “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that — and shudder.”  No, it isn’t enough just to believe.  There must be action with it – that which sets it in motion.  The verse just prior confirms it.  James 2:18 “But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’  Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.”

You see, Jesus didn’t just say, “Believe in Me.”  He said repeatedly to all who would hear, “Follow Me.”

Matthew 4:19 Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.

Matthew 10:37-39 ³⁷ Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; ³⁸ and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. ³⁹ Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Matthew 16:24-25 ²⁴ Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.

John 1:43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”

John 12:26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

If Jesus felt the need to call others to follow Him, then we must follow Him and do likewise.  When we share the gospel, we are to make it clear that Jesus calls us to believe in Him and follow Him – denying ourselves, losing our lives for His sake, loving Him more than anything or anyone else.  Jesus never tried to make His message more palatable by simply asking His listeners to believe in Him.  He called for followers then and He calls for followers now – those who will live as He lived, talk as He talked, walk as He walked.  He wants those who will reflect His image to the world.

We are called to be followers of Jesus.  Let’s call others to become followers of Jesus, too!

Change of Seasons

The weather is cooler, leaves are changing colors, we’ve had to turn on the heater, the days are shorter, and we’re wearing warmer clothes.  Yes, it’s a change of season and I’m excited about it.  At the same time, it seems I’m in a season of change in life, and I want to be as enthusiastic about it as I am about the change in weather.

I have led various small prayer groups over the years, with differing purposes, and usually different people in each of the groups.  We get to know each other by the Spirit, and sometimes the Lord draws us together into fellowship, as well.  For more than five years, now, three of us have been connected in this way, even going to China together last spring.  I love these two ladies dearly and trust them with my life – both spiritually and naturally.  We are forever connected by the Holy Spirit.

We’ve all been aware for some time that a season of change for our prayer group was approaching; we just didn’t know the exact timing.  The Lord began to prepare us a few months ago for the coming change by calling us to seek Him as to whether we were still to be a part of the group.  Even though all of us recommitted fully, we knew the time was short for things to remain as they were.  A few months later, the season of change is upon us, and the other two women have moved on into the next season of the Lord for them.

I am truly excited for what the Lord will do in this next season of their lives.  He’s been training and preparing them during our five years together for other people who need to know Him as they do.  If they didn’t move on now, in God’s perfect timing, they would stagnate, and miss ministering to and with others the Lord has put in place.  They have chosen to follow His lead away from the comfortable and secure place of the familiar, into the unknown – because it’s their season of change.

Though I have loved our weekly prayer times and the regular fellowship that came from it, I am not sad.  With much anticipation, I look forward to those people the Lord will bring in to replace these prayer warriors.  Despite the much He has already accomplished in and through us, there is still much to do in prayer for His body in preparation for Christ’s return.  He’s not finished with this group, but is pruning it for greater fruitfulness in all of us, as well as grafting in new branches with whom we will wrestle against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, and spiritual wickedness in the heavenly realms on behalf of the body of Christ!

It’s a new season – duration unknown.  I must continue to fix my trust and hope in the Lord, not in what I do or with whom I do it.  I am here for His purposes in every season of life, including seasons of change.  In His plan and purpose, I will forever love and treasure the people connected with me in each season.  I will pour into them and allow them to pour into me as we grow in God together serving Him.  When the season of change comes, I will release them and trust God as we begin all over again.

A season of change in God – how exciting!

Psalm 31:14-15 But I trust in You, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.”  My times are in Your hands . . .

In Jesus’ Own Words

“If I am not doing the works [performing the deeds] of My Father, then do not believe Me [do not adhere to Me and trust Me and rely on Me].  But if I do them, even though you do not believe Me or have faith in Me, [at least] believe the works and have faith in what I do, in order that you may know and understand [clearly] that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father [One with Him].”  John 10:37-38

Jesus spoke these words with the confidence of a man totally yielded to the Holy Spirit of God in and through His life, not with arrogance or self-assurance because He was God.  He did the Father’s works and reflected His nature so others could know the Father and He are One.

At the prompting of the Holy Spirit, Jesus spoke in a way designed to cause His accusers to consider not only His motives, but theirs.  Anything He did was to show the Father in Him and through Him.  It was more than just the miracles that upset them.  Was it also His observance of the Sabbaths?  His following of the Law of Moses and the law of the land?  Maybe they were upset by the extended times of prayer He observed – out of their view.  The problem with Jesus doing all these things was not that He was following religion’s requirements, but that change was happening in people with whom He came in contact.  Unfortunately, the religious leaders weren’t interested in being changed themselves, or helping others change for the better, so they failed to examine their hearts to discover what was lacking.

The contents of Jesus’ heart reflected the Father through the works of every area of life.  It was a life of God’s love – inside – that made the difference outside; improving hearts and lives in those who would receive, and increasing rejection and persecution by those who would not.  He truly loved His neighbor, wherever He was and whoever it might be.  He truly loved even his detractors, with the desire to shine forth God’s love for them even when He confronted in boldness and authority.  He required love to govern even His thoughts toward all people – the good and not-so-good – which overflowed in His words and actions.  (Matt. 12:34)

Jesus is my example – not of how God lived on this earth, but how a completely humble Man could live on this earth in total reliance on His heavenly Father’s Spirit to walk in love.  Since that is the case, my aim is to be able to say, with the same humility and boldness, that you can believe the works and have faith in what I do, for I am revealing in all actions and words that I and the Father are One, through Christ.  I want to be there – so dead to myself and so yielded to Holy Spirit that I know, without doubt, I’m doing exactly what He wants in His way and timing and with His amazing heart of love.  Since Jesus prayed that very thing for me, you, and all who will believe and follow Him, I know His Word is at work in me right now to bring this to pass.  His Word never fails!

John 17:21 “That they all may be one, [just] as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe and be convinced that You have sent Me.”

P.S.  Please read the announcement of the previous post.

Announcement

For those of you who have subscribed to receive Prayer Nuggets by email every month through www.prayforthenation.org, you haven’t been forgotten in September.  Actually, it’s been posted since early September to the newly rebuilt website, which finally launched Sunday, September 27.  Now that it’s launched, we have discovered a problem with the program used to send out the email.  While we continue to work on that, please visit the great new site and read the Nuggets, as well as investigating the rest of it.  I hope you will find it to be something to which you will return frequently for updates concerning prayer around the world, as well as telling others about it.  Meanwhile, I hope to have the email portion up and running very soon.  Thanks for your patience!

It’s Harvest Time!

John 4:35 “ . . .I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.”

Something has really stirred in me concerning the kinds of prayers we are praying for the harvest of souls in these last days compared to what Jesus said.  Maybe you’ve heard these phrases prayed, or even prayed something similar yourself.  “God, bring in the harvest!”  “We call for the harvest to come in.”  “God, make them ready.”  While these prayers come from the sincere hearts of those who want people to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they are unscriptural – do not agree with what the Word says – so they are ineffective.

The harvest is ready already.  If it was true when Jesus walked the earth, it is still true today.  Let’s think about it.  When a natural field is ready for harvest, does the farmer – even the most God-fearing among them – stand in his barn and beg God to bring in the harvest for him?  No.  Neither does he command the harvest to pull itself up and come into the barn.  The farmer, along with others who help, goes out with the proper equipment and harvests those crops, bringing them into the barn.

Matthew 9:37-38 “³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. ³⁸ Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

This is a prayer we can pray concerning the harvest that will definitely be answered.  Jesus made it very clear that we are to ask the Lord of the harvest to send forth workers into His harvest field.  He didn’t say to ask Him to ripen the crops, or bring them into our churches so our pastors can lead them in the sinner’s prayer.  He didn’t even say to call for the evangelists to go.  He said to ask the Lord to send workers.  It’s very simple, but when you pray this prayer, remember that you might be one of the workers you’re praying for.

Mark 16:15-16 “¹⁵ He (Jesus) said to them (disciples), “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. ¹⁶ Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”  (Words in parentheses are inserted for clarification, and underlined for emphasis.)

Jesus told us, those who follow Him, to go into all the world – where the harvest is.  He’s given us all the tools we need (His Word and the Holy Spirit), but He will not do it for us, nor will He have the harvest come to us.  Those who believe the gospel we share, when we go, will be harvested for eternal life.  Jesus wants passionately for the lost to hear and believe, and He wants passionately for us to be the ones who take the gospel to them.  He said, “Go!”  And He said, “Pray for more to go.”  It’s harvest time.  Will you obey?

The Words of Your Mouth

Ephesians 4:29 Amplified  “Let no foul or polluting language, nor evil word nor unwholesome or worthless talk [ever] come out of your mouth, but only such [speech] as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others, as is fitting to the need and the occasion, that it may be a blessing and give grace (God’s favor) to those who hear it.”

Are you convicted, maybe convicted again, when you read this verse?  That’s really not a bad thing.  It’s what you do as a result of conviction that determines your walk with the Lord, and determines the effectiveness of your witness to others.  The reason the Lord brings conviction in this, or any area, is because of His great love for you and mercy towards you.  He wants to bring you closer in your walk with Him, but some of your old fleshly ways are hindering both you and others through you.

What comes out of your mouth every time you open it?  In your church setting?  Around your family and friends away from the church setting?  Is every word good and beneficial to their spiritual progress, sometimes including very firm correction with the Word, in love, as well as words of praise and affirmation?  Is your honest answer the same for both groups of people in your life?

When you relax with friends and family, if you are like me, you probably tend to let down your guard with your words.  After all, these are the people you trust and who will love you no matter what, right?  That may be true, but that’s not the crystal clear direction God gave.  He allowed for no exceptions.  He is very clear in saying not to let any foul or polluting language, evil word, unwholesome or worthless talk ever come out of your mouth; however, He doesn’t stop with the “Do Not”.  He goes on to say what you are to allow to come forth instead – only such speech as is good and beneficial to the spiritual progress of others, as fits the need and occasion, so that all who hear it (Notice it’s not just the ones to whom we speak directly who will hear; there can be others in the vicinity who hear, as well.) will be blessed and receive grace – by the words of your mouth – every time.

Maybe your words really are good most of the time because you have already grown much in this area.  The standard is clear, however, and it’s not a most of the time standard.  It’s all the time.  This isn’t an impossibility, or He’d never have told you to do it; nor would He bring conviction when you don’t.  His kindness leads you to repentance (Romans 2:4).  He wants you convicted of and living in the Truth of His Word for your life, not condemned by your words.  That’s one reason Jesus gave you His Holy Spirit.  Yield to His conviction every time you speak contrary to this verse, and rejoice that He loves you so much as to correct you so you will look more and more like Him.  Not only will others be able to see Him in your actions, but they will hear Him in your words.  To know Christ and make Him known – every time you open your mouth!