Understanding Your Role In Your Walk With God
“Now Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
God framed the world we see with words we cannot see. “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all long suffering and teaching.” 2nd Timothy 4:2. The harvest is a short season of urgency and all that we hold in our hands must be used for more than one purpose. We must defend ourselves as we harvest and always stay vigilant; without the insight of God’s word, it can become difficult to distinguish enemies from friends.
It is then when we should empower ourselves with the daily word of God. When we go before him and communicate (Pray) we are strengthened and he is able to pour into us what we will need to pour into others. The truth of the matter is, there is far more in the unseen realm and the Lord beckons us to trust him right here and now. Wait, be patient, and your faith will allow God to reveal to you in time what you cannot see fully at the moment.
If we allow God to control the situation, he will always exceed our expectations. He says in scripture that, and I am quoting loosely here, Isaiah 55:8 “My ways are not your ways and my thoughts are not your thoughts.”
God has communicated with me on more than a few occasions: wait and see, hold on, trust me, be still. I have to make a confession; sometimes I have heeded and can honestly say in those times, I have gained first-hand knowledge of just how great God is.
Remember to be sober and discerning, always keep a vigilant eye on the enemy, and make certain you wear the whole armor of God, prayer is a vital piece of weaponry. If you neglect this strategic piece, you will experience the enemy’s attacks up close and personal. But as you learn to pray with authority, you develop the ability to strike the enemy from a distance and you will maintain a victorious, one-up position.
2nd Corinthians 10:4 says, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.” When you read this verse you have to picture both a fortress and a prison in your mind and then apply this picture to your own life. Ask yourself; are there any areas in my life currently being controlled by the enemy’s lies? Have you allowed fear, doubt, worry, un-forgiveness, self-worth, anger, discouragement or hopelessness to enter your mind? If you allow it, the enemy will help you to create an impenetrable fortress that will keep out the light of God, and it also can become the prison you cannot seem to escape from. These are strongholds the enemy uses to prevent you from fulfilling God’s plan and your ultimate purpose.
Think of 2nd Corinthians 10:5. This is your war cry! “Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.” You have to choose to get out of any situation that has exalted itself against the knowledge of God. You have, in this journey, weapons at your disposal:
Prayers of faith
Prayers of intersession
Prayers of supplication
Prayers of petition
You have your spiritual family!
Just to name a few, and each serves a different and necessary purpose in the walk of faith.
I am personally attempting to bring home the importance of the Tools given to each of us, their significance, and how they play a major role in ministry. Here is how I see the toolbox as I have visually created it in my mind. Everyone’s toolbox has many different tools and they are uniquely our own. Some will strengthen us, as the Lord knows where we will need it most in any given situation we face. If we will submit to his plan for us, he can supply all the tools that we will need to be effective in the Kingdom. Some examples of the tools that can be in our toolbox are:
Oil: Represents the Holy Spirit which can be used to anoint our homes, healing, and protection against evil.
Tape: To mend relationships or indicative of counseling for those who are seeking clarity and direction.
Spatula: It can repair cracks in a person’s life view and helps to rebuild relationships that are broken and torn asunder from a variety of experiences.
Paintbrush: This is one of the most significant tools in my toolbox. It gives me the ability to change the darkness to brighter hues of hope and to bring others into a more colorful, optimistic perspective.
The process is not you; it is about His plan in motion. The toolbox represents all those essential ingredients to make you effective and sets you apart in the Kingdom. This is a process, such as studying his word to show yourself approved. He promises to supply all of our needs, including preparing us for what he wishes us to do.
You are an influencer, a person who can bring about outcomes that are part of his overall plan. Through you, he can reach the lost and broken. Through your brokenness, he can mirror change. You are the vessel he is using, and your tools will help you make a difference.
No matter which direction he sends you in or what your purpose may be, which will become clear to you over time, there is one essential ingredient in your toolbox that without it, all your tools will not be effective; it is LOVE. His love led to our salvation. It pours Mercy and Grace upon us daily and if we cannot deal with others with this same kind of Christ-like Love, we will not reap the harvest that the Lord is asking us to work in. This is a lesson I have only just begun to fully understand and, honestly, have yet to perfect.
But one thing is for sure, God is in need of laborers for this darkest of harvest season, be sure to respond, for he is calling us all into action. He is saying that the time is short, that we need to rise, to become workers and not spectators in His Kingdom. Let’s respond together in one roaring voice to the verse in Isaiah 6:8: “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”