Think It Not Strange

“Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.” --1^st Peter 4:12-13 (NIV)

As you follow the call of the Lord on your life, you will face opposition. The enemy of your soul hates nothing more than for you to burn so bright that others catch fire, too. He will try every trick he knows to discourage you, deceive you, and bump you off the path that is producing fruit for the Kingdom. You should expect this.

This opposition is not reason to run and hide. On the contrary, when you face opposition that flies in the face of what you know the Lord has told you, then it should be encouragement! You are doing something that is rocking the spiritual places enough that the enemy is taking note of you.

Don’t think it strange that attacks come harder and heavier as you push more into your calling. When you were sitting on the sidelines, content being saved and not really doing anything, you probably didn’t face as many spiritual battles because Satan wasn’t scared of you—you posed no real threat to him. Your complacency in Christ didn’t bother him…although he had lost the battle for your soul, he didn’t figure he’d lose many more people because of you. But as you become more consumed by the things God has called you to, then you should fully expect the devil to try to disrupt things.

The avenues in which he’ll come at you are endless. From external things (relationships deteriorating, having a perceived lack of resources, too many demands on your time) to internal things (exhaustion, loneliness, doubt), the enemy will attack you in your places of vulnerability. He is good at this. He’s been doing this to people for thousands of years. Expect it.

My word to you today is this: persevere. Keep pushing towards the Lord. It is well worth the fight to stay true to the call God has placed on your life. The very fact that the enemy is attacking you is an indication that you are doing the right thing. Take the attacks as signs that you are on the right path to destroying the kingdom of darkness!

There is nothing better you can do than walking out what the Lord has called you to; don't let the enemy scare you away from it or take it from you. Joy, peace, blessing, and abundance are yours through Jesus Christ Our Lord! Amen!!!

Revelation

This is gonna be short and sweet today. I just want to say a little about revelation, and what it means to you.

Maybe you have heard “revelation” before and not known what people were talking about. It’s a pretty simple concept. I know you’ve had one of those “Aha!” moments in your life, right? Something clicks and it’s like a light goes off in your head. Basically, revelation is that kind of moment when related to spiritual matters.

When you have a revelatory experience, God shows you something. He may show you something altogether new, He may put a new spin on things, He may change your perspective, He may give you deeper insight or knowledge…He may do all sorts of cool things. This kind of experience keeps things fresh in your faith walk; it keeps things exciting. That’s why it is important to constantly seek and receive revelation from the Lord. When He is showing you things all of the time, your fire keeps burning brighter; your faith keeps increasing and there is a much smaller possibility of stagnation or burnout in your spiritual life.

To have this kind of experience, I would suggest two things: 1) Ask for it. God gives to those who ask (Luke 9:10-11). If you desire more of the Lord, let Him know, and He will be faithful to pour it out. 2) Put yourself in position to receive it. Yes, it seems that these blasts of revelation come at completely unforeseen times, but I think it also kind of functions in relation to how much you spread your net for it. Let me explain... If you pray for revelation and just sit around waiting on it, then it could very well come, BUT it may take a while, or not come that often, or not be as deep as you wanted it. However, if you dedicate yourself to reading the Word every day, or give yourself to prayer, or immerse yourself in reading church history, or set up meetings with spiritual leaders in your life, or spend time with those you respect spiritually who can speak wisdom and knowledge and guidance into your life, then I would say you are putting yourself in a better position to receive something.

When God is shining light into things you’ve never noticed or seen before, it will truly bring you to life. Lord, we just pray You pour it out. More and more. In Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.