Thursday, December 13, 2012

Having a Change of Mind

My Utmost For His Highest
 
You cannot truly intercede through prayer if you do not believe in the reality of redemption. Instead, you will simply be turning intercession into useless sympathy for others, which will serve only to increase the contentment they have for remaining out of touch with God. True intercession involves bringing the person, or the circumstance that seems to be crashing in on you, before God, until you are changed by His attitude toward that person or circumstance. Intercession means to “fill up . . . [with] what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ” (Colossians 1:24), and this is precisely why there are so few intercessors. People describe intercession by saying, “It is putting yourself in someone else’s place.” That is not true! Intercession is putting yourself in God’s place; it is having His mind and His perspective.’ CHAMBERS
 
I thought intercession was praying so God would fix the problem … either the person or the circumstance .. not me!  This raises so many questions.  So where is the line drawn? When do we do something and when do we trust God to do something?  But then that is the point isn’t it.  God can do something through me or through someone else .. or not … the key is having His mind and perspective … Jesus was capable of doing many things in response to what was happening around Him .. He walked on water, raised the dead, headed the sick, resisted Satan … do you really think that a few Jews could subdue Him?  He chose to do the Father’s will.  He said they were one … If you had seen Jesus .. you had seen the Father … 1 Corinthians 2:15-18 “The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord  so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.”
 
Every day I am faced with challenges.  Things that challenge my patience, my compassion, my principles, and my faith. I know the way the Lord is leading me, yet, my flesh says .. you can handle this another way .. and yet, to my benefit,  the Spirit constrains me.  The Lord is teaching me meekness … not doing what I can do in my own power, but the Father’s will.  And how do you know the Father’s will?  Only by having a deep relationship with Him. Have I arrived? I don’t think so .. but I am on that path and my feet are moving .. so I am making progress.
 
Being a Christian is not about being a punching bag or easy mark.  It is about listening for God’s voice and walking in obedience to what you hear, even if it doesn’t make any sense. My goal is that one day when someone asks “What was Jesus like?” they will say, look at the guy over there .. that is what He was like … How about you?
 
Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

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