Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Patterns and Revelations

Patterns and Revelations
"Who endowed the heart with wisdom or gave understanding to the mind?" Job 38:36

I live in a culture that has multiplied my choices.  How thankful I am for the freedom to choose. But what comes with so many choices is the temptation to not move into the Room of Decision!  The difference between my decision making now and before I trusted Christ, is the difference between the natural and the supernatural.  When I chose to follow Christ, I chose to give up my old self; now I must keep choosing to give up my sin so I can be my best for Him.

Making decisions as a Christian, is learning to pattern the routine of my life like Jesus patterned his ways after God's (John 5:17).  In fact, Jesus said, " . . .whatever the Father does, the Son also does (v. 19). Jesus was always Watching God.

I must settle once and for all that as a Christian, I live by revelation.  To rely soley on human reasoning pressures me to be clever and competitive.  That is why God commands me to "fix your thoughts on Jesus" (Hebrews 3:1).  The word, "fix" in the Greek means to think, observe, to consider.  A related word means to "discern."  So a better way to say it to myself is, "Teach your thoughts to think on Jesus!"  Fixing my eyes on Jesus teaches me how to Wait for God.  I love the Psalmist's words, "Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret" (37:7); Waiting patiently, I can dance, I can sing, I can find a pattern that I repeat that helps me swirl down in his presence.  

A third part of living by revelation is to remember that I need insight or understanding to distinguish between right and wrong.  As a woman who has leadership within her, I also need understanding to distinguish between better and superior.  It might be good to take on a new responsibility, but is it what's best?  I might perceive with my senses that I can handle that extra request or opportunity, but my senses do not ensure understanding (Daniel 12:8).  Conversely, when I live by revelation, the Spirit could lead me to say "yes" to someone or to something that my imagination could not perceive!  That's the wonder of God working in my life! As my thoughts are fixed on the Radiance of God's glory, Jesus, I cannot help but have reverence in my heart because the Holy Spirit speaks to my spirit! And I learn to work with the Wonder of his ways.

 As I create patterns in my life to watch and wait for God, he gives me the gift of understanding.  Simply,  decisions I make from the leadership within me, come from knowing how to Watch, how to Wait and how to Work with Wonder.

"Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law."  Psalm 119:18