Strap yourself in. I’m taking you for a ride.
Not to the next beautiful destination, friend. But to the beauty of what has been thus far in 2022.
And trust me. Though it wasn’t perfect, there sure were some incredibly beautiful spots along the way.
So let’s hone in for a bit.
Shall we?
“The best is yet to come.”
The anthem of hope firmly fastened to my heart was how I entered into this new year.
God had been speaking to me throughout the previous season, and I knew my expectations from life moving forward were good & glorious.
Looking back to reflect & learn all that 2021 had packed within itself, and reaching forward to lay a hold of what 2022 promised was the delicate beam I found myself balancing on as I made my way into Jan ’22.
Ok.
Now brace for impact.
A day into the new year and I was tested positive with Covid.
Really now?
Friends, over the course of 2021, the Lord had taught me not only the power of his Word, but also the power of standing on his Word. Once he speaks, it is finished. The matter is settled.
So though I had begun this year with an unexpected diagnosis, I knew what the Lord had promised. I knew he would see me through yet another valley and that I would come out not only unscathed and unharmed, but seven times stronger than I was going in.
Because that’s how the Lord works. The restoration he brings about is always to a place better than before. As it is says in the Passion Translation,
“And then, after your brief suffering, the God of all loving grace, who has called you to share in his eternal glory in Christ, will personally and powerfully restore you and make you stronger than ever. Yes, he will set you firmly in place and build you up. And he has all the power needed to do this—forever! Amen.”
(1 Peter 5:10)
Friends, the Hebrew word for glory is – kabod. Experience with the Lord has taught me that whatever the enemy means for evil will not only be overturned by the hand of the Living God, but also used by him to bring about the manifestation of something good that releases his kabod, his glory into my life.
Please, Lord. Show me how.
God uses All Things
So though I got down with Covid, I found myself involved with two amazing challenges online – a 31-day Wisdom Challenge hosted by Pedro Adao as well as a 5-day Prophetic Planning Challenge by Roma Waterman.
Honing into the voice of the Lord was the number one thing that I needed spiritually, because where the enemy brings chaos, God brings clarity. So I learnt to lean in closer and hear what the Lord was saying and what I heard back from him, friends has given me much hope moving on, not only for a promised future, but for life as it happens – right here, right now.
Let me try and break down the fruit I have received thus far, from this rather uncommon time here:
1. Facebook Lives:
Watching a dazzling array of powerful speakers like Bill Johnson, Lisa Bevere and Heidi Baker across a time span of 31 days in Pedro Adao’s Wisdom Challenge during this time was the very thing that gave me the unction to go ahead with my first set of FB lives!
Though I was physically battling weakness, I experienced the Lord’s anointing work dynamically to create beauty within and bring meaning to an otherwise bleak landscape. I was truly reminded of what they say,
Every dark cloud has a silver lining.
2. The Book of Proverbs:
It was Dr Brian Simmons who in Jan beginning kicked off not only the Wisdom Challenge, but also my own personal time in the Book of Proverbs. Not only have I been enjoying my time in this book, but it has produced much fruit – challenging me, exhorting me, calling me higher.
Lady Wisdom, it seems, must be pursued. And this past season, I have found myself running.
3. Divine Rhythms of Grace, Rest & Play:
Learning to lay down creative projects for a bit and to prioritize instead my personal healing and recovery has been a huge part of my process thus far, but also a kind of eye-opener concerning the true heart of the Father towards me.
I’m learning, friend, that He isn’t after my works. He is after my wholeness – body, spirit and soul.
Author, Hannah Brencher encapsulates this sentiment beautifully as a part of her own personal journey with Jesus this season as she affirms,
I AM IMPORTANT + I MATTER
So with the right order of priorities, I now am learning to create in a grace-filled, restful and playful way through the Lord’s unforced rhythms that keep me whole, and don’t leave me broken.
Because the truth is works don’t validate me. Love does.
4. Soak-Sprout-Sautè:
I have also been learning from Jesus the art of soaking + sprouting lentils and whole grains. Finding myself in the kitchen – chopping and sautèing – a mixed bag of carrots, beans, cauliflower, capsicum and broccoli has been symbolic of a subtle, but sure shift from my tendency to have processed foods to a much more healthy intake.
Nope, I am not giving a class on cooking, but rather offering on a plate the perspective that my body (and yours) is not a dumpyard, it is a temple of the Holy Spirit – the very house of God.
And what he calls holy ground, I’m learning to too.
5. Switch the Lights:
I also learnt this season a very interesting fact – the white lights that we use in our rooms & homes after sunset deceive our senses into believing that its still day time, which causes us to remain subconsciously alert even after the sun goes down.
This increased brain activity at a time that God designed for our bodies to rest & renew, results in prolonged evenings/nights and crabby mornings.
So what’s the antidote?
A very small change has made a big impact for me, friend.
I decided to ditch the idea of using white lights after sunset, and stick to a yellow table lamp instead. One could actually try candles too. The idea is to create an environment that helps reduce activity and promote rest instead.
Switching the lights can most definitely switch the script.
The God of All Things
Candid confession time now.
Until recently, I believed that God was only interested in moving the big mountains that stood in my way, and didn’t really care that much about my day-to-day life.
But looking back on my experience as I write this today, I am so amazed, friend, at how wonderfully He has revealed himself to me to be both,
The God of the Practical + The God of the Miraculous
My experience in these times testifies that God is a hands-on Father. He is so crazy about His kids that He insists on being involved in the details of our lives.
From hiding tiny surprises for us as He meets our everyday needs to manifesting divine interventions that part the proverbial Red Sea, He is invested in it all as the God of the mundane, but also as the God of the mighty.
So as I wait upon Him to perform the signs, wonders & miracles that I know He has promised me, I am also deeply content in knowing Him as an intimately connected Father who walks with me in the cool of the day, and is hugely interested in revealing His kabod to me – not only one day when, but also right here, right now.
OK.
Enough said.
I’m taking my foot off the gas, friend. We’re almost there!
The ride may have been bumpy at times, I admit. But you chose to stick it out with me, and I commend you for it.
You’ve been brave.
So as I get ready to roll up the windows, I thank you for the priviledge of your company.
I do need you to know that I am proud of journeying alongside a worthy fellow traveller like you. The roadblocks and humps we have needed to manouver were very real, but so was the beauty and the glory that came with the trip.
All because of the reality of a God, who despite my taking leave right now, promises to be by your side forever – without a shadow of turning. So remember to let him in, friend and let him take over.
For its this kind of genius love that gets in the driver’s seat for us, and taking a hold of the steering wheel of our lives; leans over waiting patiently as we settle into the passenger seat, to hand us a steaming cup of mocha with a glint in his eye that lovingly says,
“Buckle up, babycakes. Its your Father who has the wheel.”
Get ready for some kabod.
SoulandSubstance27 