LOVE IS THE PRINCIPAL THING

Lesson 70 

When we break through the veils of our offenses, hurts and wounds through the renewing of our minds, we see in a different way and therefore we can love in a different way by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Realizing our own limitations by the inability to love when we were yet veiled by the hardness of our hearts, we now understand the limitations of others who are still veiled. Jesus asked, “Father, forgive them because they know not what they do”. We can do the same, because in His light we see the light!

Choosing to love as the “right thing to do” is mostly a religious act with feigned “love”, which is a fake to say the least - as all efforts of the flesh are!

So, how will we be able to love with God’s love?

First of all through repentance and forgiveness. Then, simply rest in the Lord and yield to the Spirit of love - unconditionally!

The thing to conquer is our old perceptions and negative thought patterns, while destroying the records of wrong. This puts you in the place where compassion can flow from a pure heart filled with the light of His Presence and the freedom to love even the unloveable!  Thank You, Jesus for Your grace provision through the blood that cleanses us from all unrighteousness!

The Disease of Leprosy

Lesson 59

Not many of us have seen a leper. But there is a disease of leprosy running rampant - not only in the secular section of society, but amongst Christians - brothers and sisters in the Lord.

It is interesting to find the cause of Miriam’s leprosy in Numbers 12:

"And Miriam and Aaron spake against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married: for he had married an Ethiopian woman.

And they said, Hath the LORD indeed spoken only by Moses? hath he not spoken also by us? And the LORD heard it. (Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which wereupon the face of the earth.) And the LORD spake suddenly unto Moses, and unto Aaron, and unto Miriam, Come out ye three unto the tabernacle of the congregation. And they three came out. And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth. And he said, Hear now my words: If there be a prophet among you, I the LORD will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so, who is faithful in all mine house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the LORD shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them; and he departed. And the cloud departed from off the tabernacle; and, behold, Miriam became leprous, white as snow: and Aaron looked upon Miriam, and, behold, she was leprous."

Apart from slandering Moses, the anointed of the Lord, there was also a matter of pride involved, which is always the case when someone is a slanderer or a gossiper. The judgment of God was leprosy! Wow! That is something we truly need to ponder upon and repent of if we are guilty of the same thing. 

Psalm 105:15 "Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm." 

Sometimes we wonder why we are cast out, so to speak “outside the camp” (of HIs Presence). It might be God’s judgment on our tongues, which mark us a UNCLEAN"!  If we read Numbers 12, we see that God departed from the temple! 

When the Prophet, Isaiah encountered the manifest presence of the Lord (Isaiah 6), it was the first thing he was convicted of: The uncleanness of his lips and those of the people around him.

Talking behind someone's back, listening to the slander of others, believing the worst of another and then judging him/her, is a serious offense in the eyes of the Lord, causing His presence to depart.

God always has the Provision ready when we repent. So, let us do so and ask for the cleaning coal from the altar to have our mouths purified, declaring with David,

"I said, “I will guard my ways That I may not sin with my tongue; I will muzzle my mouth while the wicked are in my presence.” Psalm 39:1

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be well-pleasing in Thy sight, Oh Lord!"

AVOIDING “PILE-UPS”

Lesson 58

While in worship I had a vision of different layers in the mind and emotions, going down even into cellular level.

The Lord was showing me that, as we come in contact with different people and situations during the day, we receive different impressions that “pile up” over our minds and emotions in layers of different intensities, causing stress levels to build up – even unto cellular level - until we feel overwhelmed with too much to cope with. We can cover up our stressful state with a façade, but sooner or later (when the pressure gets too much), the true colors of our mind and emotions will be exposed and we will reach breaking point.

This is totally unnecessary, as the wonderful provision of the Lord is to “unload” these things, processing it one by one in His Presence, as they come. In so doing, we avoid pile-ups and we are constantly being renewed in the spirit of our minds, so that we never need to be overwhelmed mentally or emotionally, or suffer the effects of stress on cellular levels.

The secret place is where we not only unload, releasing the things which affect us negatively, but also the place of strengthening in His Presence to be endowed with divine wisdom through the Word of the Lord, and empowered with the dunamis of the Spirit. This is our portion and our inheritance in Christ: the resurrection power of the Spirit - to apply into every situation, seeing strongholds shatter!

Of course, this is why there is such an assault on our quiet times with the Lord. If the enemy can steal our time with God, he also steals our peace and joy, for in the natural we simply do not have the ability or the strength to overcome his vicious assaults on our minds and emotions.

When we are burdened with the cares of this world, we cannot hear God’s voice, so we are literally operating in the wisdom and strength of man. This will not bring us anywhere.

Therefore, let us set our faces like flint, making it our goal to seek God’s face every day, sometimes several times a day, to live from His presence and in His power – not only for ourselves, but to bring His “now” word into every situation, shining the light of the Kingdom glory into every situation as a way of life, maintaining righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  Hallelujah!

Matt.11:28-30

Romans 12:1-2

Ps.27

Is.40:28-30

LIVING STRESS-FREE

Lesson 46

"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health,

 even as thy soul prospereth." 

3 John 2(KJV)

There is a clear understanding here that the state of our soul is deeply linked to our health.

From this lesson onwards we are going to focus on the state of our souls in relation to sickness and disease.

God's perfect will for us is that we walk in health and in this scripture He gives us the key: See to it that your soul prospers! After we have appropriated God's provision for healing if we are sick, we need to maintain soul health in order to keep our healing.

The soul consists of the mind, emotions and will.  

The Word also states that as a man thinks in his heart, so is he (Prov. 23:7). This implies that the condition of your body is directly related to the state of your soul. Sickness is imbalance, dis-ease, lack of peace and "soundness". 

Let us start with the greatest enemy of our well-being, which is stress. Some would say that stress is inevitable, yet if you look closely it is very intricately related to the mind and we have the ability to choose what we think and how we react. We stress because there is an underlying element of fear that things will not work out the way we think they should and are especially time-related. We stress because we put ourselves under pressure to reach the deadline in time. We stress because we fear the opinions and reactions of others.

Negative thinking patterns have a chain effect, affecting the emotions; then show up in our behavior patterns and from there it has affect on the adrenal glands, which in turn secrete toxins which have a damaging effect on the body.

Heart diseases are mostly related to stress and fear; so is high blood pressure, nervous disorders, digestive disorders and many others.

Some other mind-sets that are related to the spirit of fear, are rejection, self-rejection, fear of rejection, fear of man, phobias, fear of the unknown, fear of death and many more. 

Self-rejection works against yourself and becomes your worst enemy, often resulting in auto-immune diseases. 

"God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound mind." 2 Tim.1:7

Take some time out, get still before God and wait on Him to give you His divine perspective on your life-style.  

If you discover bad habits of allowing stress to "get" to you or causing yourself to be stressed because you squeeze too many things into a short period of time, rethink!  Is this rectifiable by a few tweaks?

Mostly it is! Adopting a life-style where you intentionally give yourself more time to finish a project, taking the pressure off and also intentionally enjoy what you are doing, you are going to do yourself and your health a big favor. Simply refuse to live under pressure. Choose to relax, laugh and take time to enjoy the things and the people around you - experiencing the love of Father God, living a life of worship.

Tension in relationships come when things are not working out the way you expected. Simply remove demands and expectations from others and give the unexpected disappointments and frustrations to the Lord. Let Him take care of it and refuse to get upset about anything! Worry and stress do not change a thing, but it is very detrimental to your health and that is something you cannot afford. Therefore, opt out of it!  It is a quality decision, but something that will need discipline of the mind. If you let go, let go!  Don't pick it up again! 

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

Phil.4:6-7

Adopt a new habit of releasing all your worries, concerns, fear, anxiety and stress to the Lord. Pray earnestly for Him to take care of it, thanking Him for it. Now leave it in His hand, putting your trust in Him to work it out. Then, if you think about it again, start praising Him to work it all together for good because of your love for Him. You will experience a wonderful peace in your heart and mind.