Watch and pray!

Many believers engage in the discipline of prayer, but I am beginning to find out that prayer alone is not enough in the realm of the spirit. Jesus taught and instructed us to pray quite alright, but He also enjoined us to watch and pray. If we really understand what He meant by those words, we would appreciate that this is a "do both" admonition and not just a use of interchangeable words. Watching is a spiritual activity and so is prayer. We need to actively do both to enjoy victory in this life.

When we pray to God but do no take happenings in the spirit realm into consideration, we set ourselves up for catastrophe. The dreams we have in the night, the words God speaks in the ears of our heart, the impressions that grab our attention, the circumstances that require a spiritual interpretation, all these are as important as the prayers we say. Again, our prayers will not be effective if our heart, the place from where the wellspring of life flows, is unguarded against all sorts of offences and bitterness. These and more are part of the watching dimension of our prayer lives.

At the final analysis, true prayer is not done with the mouth only, but also with the eyes, ears, spiritual insight and understanding. God will help us all!

(There's surely more that I will be writing about this Watch and Pray command!)

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God really knows your name!

A lot of the times when God had called each of us by name, it was not just to catch our attention. Of course, He does need our attention at different times, and sometimes has to deliver us from our many distractions by calling out to us. But usually, He is doing more than this. When He calls us by name, He is making a direct reference to the purpose for which He has called us. He is not just identifying our name tag, but acknowledging the fullness of our calling and destiny.

When God created you, He had a purpose in mind, and after He finished the work of bringing you forth, He gave you a name - a name that is linked to the purpose of your creation. This is the name by which He knows and calls you. This is much deeper than the earthly names we bear (even though it may be necessary for some to change their earthly names to one that the mouth of the Lord will call). This is an eternal dimension of our earthly existence.

So, do you know the name by which God calls you in the eternal realms? You should. You should locate yourself in His heart and discover yourself in His book. God has a book in the heavens in which He has recorded all names and all purposes. The earthly copy of His book, the Bible, is a good place to start. Let the Holy Spirit, the Author of His books, guide you as you search yourself out. Who knows, you may find that the book was referring to you when it called some, "oaks of righteousness" (Is 61:3), "restorer of desolate places" (Is 61:4) or "priest of the Lord" (Is 61:6).

Seriously, ask the Lord and He will tell you great and mighty things that you do not presently know. And this revelation will be the beginning of a new journey of becoming all that He has created and named you to be.

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The three invitations of Christ

The first invitation that Christ gives to all in the world is a "come". Everyone is invited to come unto Him with all their burdens, fears and weights. In exchange, the Lord has promised to give rest, much-needed rest to much-weary souls. This is the rest we receive at salvation. Oh what a joyous day this is both on earth (in the heart of the saved) and in heaven (in the company of angels)! If you have known this joy - this endless joy of salvation - you have already come. Praise God!

The second invitation narrows down a bit, because it is not to everyone but to those who have already come to Him. To these ones Christ will say, "sit". After coming to receive rest, we are expected to sit at His feet and learn of Him - His heart, His ways, His passion and His agenda. We learn His meekness and begin to conform to His image. Oh what a process this is, one that strips us of ourselves and cloaks us with His self - His life. Many who come to Christ hurriedly leave. They do not have the patience to sit, to learn and to mature through obedience. They leave with their blessing of rest without yet knowing the place of rest. Not knowing how to sustain the blessing, it is only a matter of time before they have to come again with burdens, needing rest and thus repeating the process all over.

The third invitation narrows down even more. It is to those who have not only come but have also sat for a season. Amongst these, the Lord extends an invitation for active involvement in His eternal programme. To these ones the Lord will say, "go!" This go launches them into the reason for which they were created. Fully equipped with the knowledge of the Holy One and His Spirit, they set out in obedience to fulfill their Master's bidding. They are no longer settlers in this world, but pioneers with a heavenly, ambassadorial agenda. Oh the joy of partnership with the Lord in His glorious work on earth!

Which of the invitations have you hearkened? Come? Sit? Go?

I beseech you, don't just come to God for blessings; sit at His feet and learn of Him. Don't be a forgetful learner that always needs to repeat the lessons of life; drop every personal ambition and pursue the Kingdom and the righteousness thereof. Understand that there is a "go" that you have to obey in this life; the purpose for which you will be remembered amongst men and judged amongst saints.

The Lord is still calling: Come! Sit! Go!

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Nowhere to hide!

As David once wrote, there is nowhere on earth or under the earth that a person can go to hide from God. Not that I am looking for somewhere to hide or any such thing; I am just acknowledging His Omnipotence that continues to benefit those who belong to Him.

I belong to God, but this 'belonging' cannot be by mouth. It must be substantiated by constant obedience. Whenever we are in disobedience - whatever the issue - it does feel like we are hiding, because God's Spirit will continuously tug on us and speak to our spirits. From this tugging, there is nowhere to hide. Those who are truly His will recognise this grace and yield to the Lord, whatever He is saying and demanding.

Okay. It's confession time! No, I have not done anything worthy of death. My confession is that I have not posted any blog for a long, long time (even though the Lord had wanted me to; He was the One who got this thing going in the first place!). From this reality, there is nowhere for me to hide. I now yield myself (again!) to the Lord and to this ministry.

Thank you Lord, for grace for every new beginning!

(Friend, is there anything you are hiding from? Remember, there's nowhere to hide from God!)

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