LIGHT

“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on you.”Isaiah‬ ‭60:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    We are the reflection of the light of Christ. He is the light that brings the world out of darkness, depression, and disgrace. Isaiah was speaking of more than the capital city of Israel. Jerusalem is the representation if the redeemed. Every life that surrenders to the Lordship of Christ has the potential to be filled with His light.

    The presence of the Holy Spirit fills us with joy, heals our depression, overcomes the disgrace resulting from sin and removes the darkness from our souls. God takes action on our behalf. Benjamin Franklin said, “The longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see, that God intervenes in the affairs of man!” 

    That intervention is lasting. God is eternal. His mercies are new every morning and never come to an end. Nothing can come between us and the love of God. We make choices that allow our focus to drift away from God, but he never abandons us.

Lasting - “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.” Romans‬ ‭8:38‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    The light of salvation is ours. We should focus our attention on eternity and spend our energy on sharing the revelation that God is living and active in every area of our existence. We cannot escape His presence. We cannot go beyond His influence. He will be our constant redeemer. Shaping our lives for His glory. Let that light brighten the path of those around us.

Intervention - “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.” Psalms‬ ‭139:7-10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    My life has been marked by a series of mistakes. I have clumsily fallen more times than I can count, but depending upon God’s forgiveness has allowed me to become graceful. God fills us with grace when we follow His plan for our lives. Words from an old song are ringing in my thoughts today, “It is no secret what God can do. What He’s done for others He’ll do for you.”

    God is making each of us graceful. He is picking up, repairing and replacing our past failures, working with every detail making His glory known. He is gracefully healing us, shining  His light into the dark places of this world. We are gracefully answer His call. Becoming the positive change we are waiting to experience is our goal.

Gracefully - “But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength so that I might preach the Good News in its entirety for all the Gentiles to hear. And he rescued me from certain death. Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into his heavenly Kingdom. All glory to God forever and ever! Amen.” ‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭4:17-18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    Enduring the difficulties of life becomes less of a burden when we recognize that God is standing with us. We are standing in His strength, not our own. God is faithful! He will deliver us and bring us to safety. He is actively healing every transgression, sin and disease. Salvation in the result of the light of Christ within us. God will bring the wanderers back. They just need the light to brighten the path.

Healing - “Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for the elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. My dear brothers and sisters, if someone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back, you can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back from wandering will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.” James‬ ‭5:13-15, 19-20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    Many of us have lived through traumatic experiences. We have been “left for dead” but God has offered us a more glorious plan. He has sent into our lives messengers of healing. We just needed someone willing to “leave the light on.”

Trauma - “Jesus replied with a story: “A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. “Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked.” Luke‬ ‭10:30-34, 36‬ ‭NLT‬‬

    Are you willing to let your light shine?

Lasting 

Intervention

Gracefully

Healing

Trauma

TRAPPED

“If thou prepare thine heart, And stretch out thine hands toward him; If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, And let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; Yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear: Because thou shalt forget thy misery, And remember it as waters that pass away: And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; Thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning. And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; Yea, thou shalt dig about thee, and thou shalt take thy rest in safety.” Job‬ ‭11:13-18‬ ‭KJV‬‬

TRAPPED

    August first, 2021 the church Michele and I were Pastoring was closed by the SoCalNetwork. Honestly I’ve spent the past two months feeling a range of emotions that drew me deeper and deeper into what can only be described as aimlessness. I felt completely and utterly trapped. This was not the first time I’ve been devastated, blindsided, or hurt in ministry, but it was the first time I felt devalued and unwanted.

    Somewhere about the middle of September, I was asked, “Do you feel that your anointing has been removed, or you have somehow lost the mantle of ministry?”

“And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, And shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, When I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.” Romans‬ ‭11:26-31‬ ‭KJV‬‬

    The ministry organization I affiliated myself under has always been a “voluntary cooperative fellowship”. They do not bestow the mantle of ministry nor do they supply the anointing. Their function is to recognize and confirm the calling God has placed upon my life. They cannot take away what they did not give. Yet, even with that knowledge I wandered in aimlessness and depression for what has been nearly two months. If you’ve been wounded, walked through even a moment of life feeling trapped I offer this alternative. Redesign your thinking and allow God to transform the trap into the destination He has planned for you.

Temporary - “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Psalm‬ ‭30:5‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Restructuring - “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid. For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.” Galatians‬ ‭2:17-18‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Avoiding - “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” 1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:22‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Personal - “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:” 2 Peter‬ ‭1:10‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Pain - “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Revelation‬ ‭21:4‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Elaborate - “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Joshua‬ ‭1:8‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Destinations - “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” John‬ ‭14:3‬ ‭KJV‬‬

    Life is too short to get caught up in all the negative aspects of decisions, actions, and outcomes that are clearly outside of our control. Everything is temporary. Allowing God the opportunity to change our focus and restructure our lives according to His will opens new and untapped blessings. We simply need to examine our lives and keep ourselves free from sin. Avoiding evil in all its many forms and staying clear of its appearance is impossible without the intervention of the Holy Spirit.

    We are in a very personal relationship with Christ. He has called us and equipped us for ministry. We  are commanded to keep making the effort to live up to the potential of our calling. God has given all of us the talents to complete each task. His word offers us instruction, encouragement and strength to be and do whatever functions we fill within society. You are where you are, I am where I am to give God glory. He will take care of the pain along the way! He is taking us to the elaborate destination He has prepared for us.

"For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him." Isaiah 64:4 (KJV)