Tag: Abba

God, our Father

Eucharisteo

“The Eucharest: Receiving the holy grail of peace, grace and joy with thanksgiving.”

It was on Holy Thursday that Jesus broke bread with his disciples. Before the Passover Lamb could be sacrificed for good, he wanted to have one last meal with his friends & followers. 

Dr. Luke in the gospel account records the words of Jesus thus, “and he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them…” (Luke 22:19).

In the original language, ‘he gave thanks’ reads – ‘eucharisteo.’ The root word of eucharisteo is ‘charis’ which means ‘grace.’ Jesus took bread, saw it as grace and gave thanks.

So ‘eucharisteo,’  thanksgiving, envelopes the Greek word for grace, ‘charis.’  And the Greek word for grace, charis forms the very heart of the word, eucharisteo.

Because it was soon to be the grace of God found in the sacrifice of the Passover Lamb which would form the very heart of the table of the eucharisteo – the table of thanksgiving.

And this brings us to the deeper meaning of the Greek word – charis. For it is derived from the Greek word, ‘chara’  meaning ‘joy.’

Because deep chara joy is found only at the table of the eucharisteo – the table of thanksgiving, where the grace of God that brings with it the promise of wholeness and shalom is enfleshed for us in the Person of Jesus – the Living Bread that was broken to give us new life.

Eucharisteo. Thanksgiving. Charis. Grace. Chara. Joy.

The days after The Lord’s Supper were days that were going to see the deepest kind of wounding inflicted on him, followed by a day of gloom and despair, before he would finally be raised back to life again.

And the days that we are now walking into this Holy week commemorate & celebrate the same reality – if we suffer with him, we will also be raised up in glory with him (2 Timothy 2:12).

A Friday that saw Jesus suffer as the Lamb of God, a Saturday that marked a bridge between his suffering and his glory, and a Sunday that saw the resurrection power of God triumph over hell and death for all time to come are not only a testament of great hope to us, but also serve to take us on a brief journey that we will from time-to-time embark upon this side of heaven.

Take my hand, friend and let me lead you through it.

Good Friday:

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

(Hebrews 4:15-16)

The above passage of Scripture reveals that though Jesus was sinless, he was not pain-free. He was in fact, ‘tempted in every way, just as we are.’ He too was familiar with the pain of abuse, persecution, insults, ridicule, rejection and betrayal; so much so that he eventually surrendered even to a most terrifying death on the cross!

This tells me that as we walk through the pain and trauma of this fractured world, we can trust that even when no one else understands what we are going through, Jesus perfectly does.

And he doesn’t tell us to deny it, bury it or numb it.

Much the opposite really.

He encourages us to bring our wounding to him, because by his stripes, we are healed. The day we reckon as, ‘Good Friday’ is proof of that.

For the crown of thorns on his head to be bartered for the wreath of peace we now wear, this was a day when the righteous died for the unrighteous, the godly for the ungodly, the sinless for the sinner.

It wasn’t fair, but it was necessary.

Likewise, your suffering and mine has purpose too. There is nothing glamorous about it, but it is glorious.

How, you ask…

Our pain, whatever it may be, when brought to the foot of the Cross, enables a divine exchange –

Brokenness for wholeness.

Human suffering now embraced by his glory becomes not only shared and dignified, but immensely transformative.

Eugene Peterson puts it like this,

“…people do not suffer less when they are committed to following God. But when these people go through suffering, their lives are often transformed, deepened, marked with beauty and holiness, in remarkable ways that could never have been anticipated before the suffering.”

Our pain produces purpose when it is embraced by the beauty and power of who God is. For this is the truth of the cruciform life –

The Lord walked through unjust suffering, we will too. There is nothing right about it,  but I’m reminded that love is the logic of heaven.

So if our Savior hung on a tree that we may have hope in the midst of our pain and suffering, then let this somber yet sacred day called, ‘Good Friday’  serve as a reminder to us that our brokenness on this side of eternity does not disqualify us from the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus. In fact, it is through our brokenness that God works all things together to qualify us and to script songs of glory for all generations to echo.

So, as we have opportunity, let us approach the throne of grace – the table of the eucharisteo – to find the help we need in our time of need, but to do so with hope and joy, praise and expectation …

.. and a ton of thanks.

Silent Saturday:

“Wait for the Lord;

    be strong and take heart

    and wait for the Lord.”

(Psalm 27:14)

Sandwiched between Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection was a day where darkness seemed to have prevailed and all hope felt lost in Jerusalem. Grief and despair hung in the air as the disciples huddled together, without any comprehension of what was next. God had orchestrated this pregnant pause of sorts, but the atmosphere was thick with sorrow and suspense.

Friend, in our walk of faith, we too will have moments when we feel hopeless and discouraged. But when we do, we can always find comfort and camaraderie with the disciples. We can know that just like this wasn’t the end of their story, what we are walking through isn’t ours either.

‘Silent Saturday’ – a day riddled with fear and doubt – was in fact, a necessary bridge between the disciples’ history and their destiny. It was a purposed cross over between what was and what was yet to be – the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection, which meant but one thing:

Life would never be the same again. But on a despondent Saturday wedged between a catastrophic Friday and a monumental Sunday, this secret was hidden from them.

And somewhere I suspect the same holds true for us too.

We may not be able to fully understand or comprehend the ‘why’ behind our perceived delays, but one thing we can be certain of –

God is in it with us, and he is not busy preparing the blessing for us, but rather he is engaged in preparing us for the blessing he has already prepared for us.

In other words, our waiting is not the end of us, but rather the ‘becoming’ of us. He is the Alpha, he is the omega; but the journey?

That’s where we’ll find him.

Resurrection Sunday:

“It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him.”

(1 Peter 3:21-22)

I took a walk with the Lord the other day – a phenomenon I love calling, ‘walking with the Lord in the cool of the day.’

And as I walked on, I found myself toying with the two keys I currently possess. One is the key to the main entrance of my home, while the other unlocks my personal almirah. Wrapping each key ring around my right and left thumb respectively, I smiled.

Peering into the face of Jesus, I suddenly realised that what I really had in possession was not just the two keys that opened up portals in the natural realm, but rather keys that had authority in the spiritual. As this epiphany came through, it brought me right back to the message of Easter:

“Because on the third day, he rose again, I now have the keys to hell and death, in Jesus’ Name.”

He is Risen!

I am Risen!

Hallelujah!

So this is the Good News we celebrate on Passover.

Death has been swallowed up in victory, and darkness has been eternally vanquished!

Therefore, we can never be deadlocked in any situation because the Lamb of God has  overcome. As prized children of the most high God, we can rest in the assurance that what seems to be the end is now only a new beginning in his hands – which makes our lives a saga of unending hope, brave adventure and ceaseless glory.

The Bible states that we overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony (Revelation 12:11). So as we lift up the cup of the new covenant this Passover, let us look at our challenges square in the eye, pick up the sword of the Spirit, and decree what he has decreed over our lives, thereby enforcing the triumph of the Cross and establishing God’s kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

One of the Lord’s last directives to his disciples was to take the bread, the wine, and to remember. Do this in rememberance of me. Remember, and give thanks.

For the truth is that after what the Lord has done for us, we can never repay him. But we can remember him.

And as we remember him, it is we who will be reminded of who we are and whose we are. The Psalmist puts it like this,

“So now, what can I ever give back to God to repay him for the blessings he’s poured out on me? I will lift up his cup of salvation and praise him extravagantly for all that he’s done for me.”

(Psalm 116:12-13, TPT)

So friend, as we approach the Holy Week, let us lay hold of the life that is truly life, let us celebrate the Lord’s grace with peace, joy and thanksgiving.

Let us take the bread, take the wine and take communion.

Let us remember..

…and let us give thanks.

Eucharisteo.

Kabod through Covid

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.

Abba

“What is the value of your soul to God? Could your worth be defined by any amount of money? God doesn’t abandon or forget even the small sparrow he has made. How then could he forget or abandon you? What about the seemingly minor issues of your life? Do they matter to God? Of course they do! So you never need to worry, for you are more valuable to God than anything else in this world.”

(Luke 12:6-7, TPT)

Friends, today as I sat with Jesus over this passage of Scripture in my ‘Lectio Divina’ time (btw, if you have not yet been introduced to this practice, I highly recommend you googling some information on it, you won’t regret it, I promise!) I felt a tender, gentle reminder from Abba’s heart to soak in the Truth that I am hugely valued and eternally worthy in His sight. He looks at me with the deepest affection in His heart, a huge smile on His lips and a pure delight in His eyes.

Hmnn…

So I have made up my mind.

That that’s really the only thing that is going to define me.

The Love of my Father, my Heavenly Dad.

❤

A love so deep, profound and faithful that it will never leave me nor forsake me. It will never abandon me. It promises to be eternally true to me –

To be with me, to fight for me, to make a way for me.

Always and forever.

And should you let me speak some Truth over you today, He is the same for you too.

A doting, hands-on Father who is intimately involved in the details of your life.

You are His child, beloved – sought after, precious, valued, cared for, wanted, needed, esteemed, honored, fought for.

And though man may fail you, Jesus never will.

He calls you beautiful, bold, fearless, wise, strong, courageous.

He enfolds you within His loving embrace and calls you His own – His image bearer in the earth and His chosen one.

And no.

We don’t deserve it. We couldn’t have earned it.

But it is a grace-gift and the Bible says that Abba gives good gifts to His children.

🎁

So I’m learning to receive this uncomon grace, friend in a way so free and trusting that it lets my Heavenly Dad know –

“I love you right back, Abba. I love you right back.”

👑

Grace

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

(2 Corinthians 12:9)

What I believe I am increasingly learning is the power of living in His Strength. Not struggling in mine, but thriving in His.

Where I am weak, He is strong.

And in Him, I am complete.

Praying for the power of the Most High to overshadow us, family as we tread into a new week!

His Grace is sufficient.

Shalom
🤍🌈

Let Love happen

I’ve noticed one thing about pain. It compels us to misunderstand the nature and character of God.

Much like Eve.

Cut to the chase, here goes.

The Bible tells us that God told Eve she was free to eat from any tree in the Garden of Eden, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Why did He do that?

I believe that God was actually protecting her freedom and that of man, because we were perhaps never designed to know any evil. Yet, in the face of an inadequate understanding of God’s true nature, Eve sinned.

To me friends, it is not so much the sin that led her to partake of the forbidden fruit that matters, as much as it is what led her to.

“Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?'”

(Genesis 3:1)

For the crafty serpent to come in and sow doubt in Eve’s mind with irrelevant questions like, “Did God really say?” and have her succumb to the temptation of sin so easily, I do feel that somewhere Eve did not know the nature and character of her God well enough to begin with.

Neither did I.

But when you know better, you do better.

I am so glad, friends that we serve a God who forgives, redeems and makes all things new.

Jesus does not sit on the Throne with a stock of all our sin. He already dealt with that on the Cross.

He sits on the Throne and fights for us instead.

Our God is with us. He is for us. And He fights for us.

The Good News here is that He does not fight for victory, He fights from it.

Talking of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Word of God says:

“Then Jesus made a public spectacle of all the powers and principalities of darkness, stripping away from them every weapon and all their spiritual authority and power to accuse us. And by the power of the cross, Jesus led them around as prisoners in a procession of triumph. He was not their prisoner; they were his!”

(Colossians 2:15, TPT)

In short?

Having defeated and disarmed the powers of darkness, Jesus reigns.

And in Him, we do too.

With absolute victory over sin, sickness and death; we are called to co-reign with Christ.

So in the face of so much adversity, persecution and trauma; I am learning to be very intentional about reminding myself of some truths that though appear basic, are the very cornerstone of our faith.

And what I am realizing is that though in Christ, we do have victory over sin, sickness and death; we are not exempt from pain and suffering.

We are in the world, but not of it.

The world we live in friends, is lost and broken. So are the people that constitute it.

So when God called us to fight the good fight of faith, He made it abundantly clear that we do not fight against flesh and blood, but against the forces of darkness  for which we have absolute triumph through Christ.

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

(Ephesians 6:12)

Yes and Amen.

So it naturally follows that our enemy is not our parent, our sibling or our next door neighbour.

Our enemy is the devil, Satan. And the Good News is that he is defeated.

Yes.

The same crafty serpent that once deceived Eve and has continued in his attempts till date, is forever defeated.

How?






"By the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony." 

(Revelation 12:11)





But here is the catch.





The degree to which we seek to know the Lord is the degree to which we will be abe to walk conscious of this reality, on an everyday basis.





Pain and suffering always threaten to numb or dim our consciousness of the victory we have through Christ. So it becomes important that we learn to process it in a healthy way.





In a way that is worthy of us.





For our perspective during such times, is the difference between life and death.





We will either succumb to the despair and hopelessness that our enemy, Satan would love for us.





OR.





Or we can choose to run to Jesus.
Run to Him for the healing we need in our souls and the perspective we need in our thought process.





Co-operating with the reality that God is trying to cultivate in us during such times friends, is key.





Are we trying to avenge ourselves, or are we letting Him avenge us?





Are we wasting precious emotional resources on harbouring bitterness and resentment, or are we learning to forgive, let go and trust God?





Are we walking in anxiety and dread, or in the fullness of the peace and power that the Lord died for us to receive? 





The difference between the two sets of scenarious presented here is the difference between being a victim of our circumstances or rising above them as more than conquerors through Christ.





God often says to us,





Choose life.





Therefore, I choose to intentionally put Christ first. To surrender my will to be aligned with His and I find that the more I do so, the more I get to know the Lord.





Friends, as I am learning to do just what He says, I have found myself face-to-face with one beautiful yet startling reality,





“I may know Jesus fairly well, but I don’t know Him well enough.”





I really don’t.





I may know Him well enough to know that He is fully and completely worthy of my faith and trust, but I don’t know Him well enough to know just how much He does honour child-like trust and mustard-seed faith.





I may know Him well enough to know that He is perfect in love and perfect in wisdom, but I don’t know Him well enough to know the full extent of all that He really is, all that He is capable of doing and all that which He will do.





I may know Him well enough to know that He is my best friend and my glorious king, but I don’t know Him well enough to know His next move on my behalf.





I may know Him well enough to know that He will never leave me nor forsake me, but I don’t know Him well enough to know just how very faithful and relentless His pursuit of me, in reality, is.





I may know Him well enough to know that He is sovereign and has the final say in all matters that concern us, but I don’t know Him well enough to know just how He will bend the rules of the game as we journey on.





I may know Him well enough to know that He is good, He does good and He works all things together for good in conformity with the counsel of His will, but I don’t know Him well enough to know just how He will manifest this Romans 8:28 promise again in my life circumstances.





I know Him fairly well, friends. But I don’t know Him well enough.





Fairly well to know Him as a beloved father, a heavenly saviour and a dreadful champion of my cause; but not well enough to know just what that may mean in its entirety as my destiny unfolds.





But I take heart in what I do know.





For what I do know is that with each day that unfolds, I can seek to know Him more.





Filled with the awe and wonder of His majesty, His mercy and His might.





And somewhere I suspect that the same holds true for you too, my friend.





So together?





Let us press on to know the Lord. His going forth is as certain as the dawn; and He will come to us like the rain, like the spring rain watering the earth.





Let Love happen.





💖






	


	



			
				


			

			
His Name is Jesus
		
	
	

		






It happened again.





I rose up from my bed on a perfectly positive note. My spirit soared with expectation that confident hope inspires.





“Life is good.”





As I looked out the window, a perfectly clear blue sky greeted me. I smiled back and waited for Sharon’s response.





Tick-tock. Tick-tock.





As I waited, the clock slowly rearranged it’s arms from an intelligible V at 11 a.m to a flat L at 3 p.m to an inverted L at 6:15 in the evening.





Still no response.





With worst-case scenarious racing through my head, I take a moment to anchor myself.





“Take heart, she must be unusually busy.”





Nervously fidgeting around my cell phone, I scroll down my list of contacts to see the number of missed calls against Sharon’s name.





5.





Resolving to believe the best about the situation at hand, I put my cell phone down and walk across the room. Pulling the curtains back, I feel the rays of the scarlet setting-sun reassure me that all will be well.





The next day.





It happened again.





Maybe you can relate.





Friends, I know I am not alone when I say that this is a rather challenging time that we find ourselves in. Human relationships seem fractured and circumstances, uncertain. Yet, there remains a Rock that we can safely continue to stand and build upon.





His Name is Jesus.





I have personally never felt more grateful for the stability of Christ than right now. He is both, the answer and the anchor to our souls. In the midst of circumstances and relational dynamics that keep changing, it is His unchanging Presence and Promises that provide a firm foundation for us.





Yet, what seems to be dawning upon me with increasing clarity as I journey on with the Lord is that the fact that we have put our faith in God does not exempt us from pain, suffering or disappointment. Rather, it gives us access to the tools we need to walk victoriously through it.





Psalmist David said it like this,





"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."





(Psalm 23:4)





Sometimes friends, the only way out is through.





Through the heartbreak. Through the sickness. Through the divorce.





Not over, not under; but through.





So how do we process the pain, suffering and disappointment that will remain an inevitable reality as we walk through our own valley with the Lord?





I believe with all my heart that we have two voices in our lives that seem to want to write the narrative of our story.





One is the voice of fear, and the other is that of Love.





God’s Word urges us to choose life. But for us to be able to effectively and intentionally do that, we must know how to discern the difference between the two.





“Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.”





(Romans 12:9)





Simply put, fear will have us believe the lies of the enemy, but Love will patiently introduce us to God’s Truth.





The truth of who God is towards us in terms of His heart, His nature and His character; the truth of who we are in Christ, and the truth of what we can possess, both spiritually and naturally, in and through a relationship with Him.





Our inheritance.





Fear will have us cower in the face of disappointment. It will sabotage our responses and cause us to lower our expectations to match the level of our experience, as opposed to helping us elevate our experience to match the level of expectations that our faith in Christ inspires.





Love empowers us to do the latter.





Love encourages us to walk in the supernatural infusion of faith, hope and joy. He meets us where we are, and receives the two fish and five loaves of bread that we have to offer Him. He stoops down in the dirt and picks us up. He leads us to His red lettered words of life and prompts us to choose well.





His Name is Jesus.





He informs us that our past no longer has the authority to imprison us because He died to set us free. He lifts our countenance up to His face and beams in our direction. He reveals our royal stature as sons and daughters of the King of glory, and then commissions us to serve. He pulls us close when we hurt, and gently whispers,





“I will heal you.”





His Name is Jesus.





He makes a way where there is no way and goes before us. He works miracles in the hearts of men and turns the tide of the battle around. He fights for us in the unseen realm and tells us to just be still. He is our loving father, beloved saviour, dread champion and the Lord of all.





His Name is Jesus.





He is a promise maker and a promise keeper. He takes up the space in our hearts that is dry, parched and thirsty and fills us up till we overflow. He says things like, “I will never leave you nor forsake you, because I love you.” He is truly like none other and stands in a class all by Himself.





His Name is Jesus.





He is the way, the truth and the life. He is perfect in Love and casts out all fear. He reveals truth, inspires hope and gives joy unending. He shatters the strongholds of darkness and sets the captives free. He is a strong deliverer in times of trouble and promises to satisfy us with the fullness of His salvation.





His Name is Jesus.





He takes the mess that we find ourselves in and starts rewriting our narrative with the blood-stained ink of Calvary. He speaks words of comfort and strength, and gives us a ear to hear. He helps us discern the lies of the enemy from the Truth that He has spoken over our lives and lovingly nudges us,





“Choose life.”





He exposes fear as a poor counterfeit, and cheerily brings in the divine echo of Love in our midst. He heals our disappointment and gives us delight instead. He surrounds us like a shield and renews our strength. And in His Light, we see light.





For His Light distinguishes between that which is counterfeit, and that which is authentic; that which is fear and that which is Love; that which is a lie and that which is the Truth; that which is death and that which is Life.





So I turn my ear towards Him, friends.





“Choose Life,” I hear Him say.





Do you?