abide under the shadow
Nothing is as important as the tangible presence of the Living God in your day-to-day life.
Knock over any obstacle, walk out on every distraction, move anywhere, do absolutely anything to get in a place where you’re experiencing God now. Put the kingdom of God and the righteousness of God right in front of your nose and scream bloody murder if anything tries to squeeze in between.
It’s just been far too long that God’s people have been satisfied with a little weekly dose of spirituality. There’s way too much at stake. The time of your redemption is close - so quickly lift up your head and see what all heaven sees. There has never been such a wide open time in all of history for Jesus (and all that he is and all that he does) to be put on display.
At all costs dwell in the secret place of the most High and abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Every single thing Jesus is and does takes place only in his presence. Don’t touch that dial.
It is sad how we tend to flip channles, or worse yet - that we’re “watching” the spiritual rather than abiding. I receive your charge and need it. It’s so easy to slip into a nice, selfish apathy - where is the fear and awe of the Most High? The state of my own heart scares me sometimes.
But a question - is it possible to abide in the Presence yet be battling depression? What is depression? Psalm 73 and Jonah 4 come to mind, but not sure…
Depression is described very accurately as worldly sorrow in 2 Corinthians 7.10: Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.
Godly sorrow is like physical pain that tells you to not keep your hand on a burning stove. It lasts only as long as it takes you to repent for whatever sin caused it. Depression is like constant pain that has no healthy function. God has no desire for us to live in constant pain, physical or spiritual.
The cure for depression is the presence of God. It is impossible to overemphasize how much the joy of the Lord is your strength. I’ve seen people very close to me who couldn’t function without their prozac for years - and then have the entire thing broken off with one single prayer. Receive this Keith; you’re never going to be subject to this oppressive tormenting influence ever again. The blood of Jesus gives you authority right now over your moods.
Draw near near near to God; and resist any pull towards oppressive sadness like you would resist a pull towards pornographic perversion - they come from the same place. Know that it’s not up to you to produce joy. The Holy Spirit produces joy in you - now you make sure you consciously yield to that joy instead of giving in to oppressive moods. In Jesus’ name the battle’s already won, you just cooperate with the Holy Ghost in enforcing that.
By the way, this is exactly the kind of thing I was referring to in the original post.
Wherever you see Jesus at work, you see him healing the brokenhearted. We have the simple privilege of speaking faith with power. This is what the kingdom of God is about.
The strongman that held everybody in slavery to fear (the devil) has been totally stripped of his power, and it is high time to plunder his house. We need to be literal and unflinching about this stuff. When Jesus saw a woman all hunched over, he didn’t see someone who needed proper medical attention; he saw someone whom satan had led around tied up for 18 years. And most importantly, he cut the cord and set her free with a word.
The people who know their God will be strong and do exploits - they will be strong in the strength of the Lord and the whole power of HIS might. That means speaking the things that only Father can follow through on. That means binding on earth so it may be bound in heaven, loosing on earth so it may be loosed in heaven! Once again, there’s never been such a wide open time to lay hold of your God and not let him go for anything >>
Yes - “the joy of the Lord is your strength” (neh.8:10) has been sort of a theme for me the past …while, after the Lord revealed to me that joy isn’t just a fruit or benefit of abiding, but it’s the hinge of repentence leading to life and the medium of forcefully laying hold of the Kingdom of God.
The troubling part has been the other part of the verse that says “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared” which I’ve taken on, along with other scriptures, as a command to bring this strength-through-joy to others. But I’ve often felt powerless when it comes to those in depression — like I’m just another person posting a prayer on the bent back of a self-isolated friend. I’ve blamed my powelessness on 1. my sluggishness/apathy and 2. having never really dealt with or understood depression myslef.
You hit me with “speaking the things that only Father can follow through on”. Too often prayers are faith-less because 1. we can answer them in our own human strength or 2. they’re so obscure we couldn’t detect God’s reply or 3. as I’ve just reviewed James 4:15, perhaps we incorrectly incorporate “If the Lord wills” into our prayer life rather than first seeking and knowing the Lord’s will, then praying with faith accordingly. Thoughts on #3?
On the nose. We’re given 4 gospels (and 1 book of Acts) chock full of real life pictures of what God’s will is. Then Paul, Peter, James, John, & Jude come along and fill in every last detail that we might have missed.
James 4.15 is really just another way of Jesus saying “I only do what I see the Father do.” It refers to how we reckon our life, how we’re not willing to run out ahead of the Holy Ghost in any way. It has nothing at all to do with the prayer of faith that James refers to so powerfully in James 5.15. We need to know our God to the point where we really know what he wants - first in our own lives, and then in the lives of those he wants to touch through us.
Where God sees sin, he wills forgiveness. Where he sees darkness, he wills light. Where he sees sickness or disease, he wills healing. The point of “thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” is not somehow making ourselves OK with whatever weird mood God happens to wake up with today! God’s will is made absolutely and consistently plain, and heaven is doing just fine with it. It’s the earth (starting with me) that needs all the help it can get cooperating. And we got it - the Holy Spirit >>
Glen, this isn’t really related to what you two are talking about, but I have a question (I guess). I have periods in my life (which persist in some degree always) when I am terrified that I am not saved or that I have lost my salvation. Verses like Hebrews 10:26-31 and Hebrews: 6:4-6 make me fear that I have no hope of Heaven, will go to Hell and that God will never restore me to fellowship with him. I have found sources that have helped me with these problems (until I begin to fear again). I have near-panic attacks when I get these fears. I feel like I have committed willful sins and trampled the blood of Christ underfoot, thereby nulling any possibility of me ever being brought back to God and Jesus. I read nearly six devotionals a day and never feel closer to God. I long for forgiveness and ask for it, but feel that I am not receiving it because I don’t experience the “Godly sorrow and repentance” needed to receive it. I’m only 20 and haven’t felt close to God in years, and am afraid that I am unable to again, because of my sins and my sometimes-attitude of “I can just sin now, since God will forgive me anyway.” I guess the question is: What should / can I do?
Well again, this is exactly the subject of the post. Nothing can separate you from the love of God. Nothing can hold you back from going headlong into a level of experience in God that you’ve never had before.
The Holy Ghost breaks off that condemnation right now. That avenue of attack will never be open to accuse you again. I paint you with the blood of Jesus and you go free from that harassment.
The love of God is so simple and pure, Mike. He means exactly what he says that if you confess your sin, he is faithful and just to forgive that sin and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. You haven’t trampled underfoot the blood of Christ. You’ve made immature mistakes that you are now genuinely sorry for. Jeremiah 8.6 shows you exactly the kind of repentant heart Father is looking for, and anytime someone can stand back from sin and really say “What have I done!?” there is a place of repentance. Now go and sin no more. Be filled with the Holy Ghost, pray in the Holy Ghost, follow the Holy Ghost around - and out of that dependence you will find yourself walking with a strong moral integrity you never knew you had before.
Your ticket into the presence of God isn’t so much the right devotionals - it’s knowing and believing the love he has toward you. It’s access by one Spirit. You can pray simply and innocently, “Holy Spirit bring me in before the Father, Holy Spirit reveal Jesus to me” - and then hold on.