Continued from Part 1

Then God in his great mercy started to reveal his definition of rest to me, it went something like this;

 Do you believe without a doubt that I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? Do you believe the things that you read in the word of God about my provision for my people? Do you believe me when I say to you, that I love you and will take care of your needs? Do you believe me when I tell you that I am your shield and strong tower, that I have placed my spirit within you so that you can reflect to the world around you that I love them?

Do you believe me? Or are my words just a story to you?

 Ouch! What could I say to all of that, except, “God, I am not really sure”   I have to admit for a while as I thought about those questions; I really was not sure what I truly believed.

 Please understand something, that I am an avid bible scholar, I am always digging around in the word of God, so I know what it says when it comes to his promises to us, His children, but actually believing that those promises were true for me and my family was a hard pill to swallow. It came down to the fact that I was battling with a chronic case of unbelief in God’s ability to take care of me.

 I knew that I loved the Lord, and I knew that I did not want to be without him, and I also knew that I needed to go from playing faith to really believing that God is who He says He is.

 A friend of mine always says that the 6 inches between the head and the heart are extremely long; I was discovering the unfortunate truth of those words.

 I believe that God, through the Holy Spirit asked me a few more questions, it was this; “Will you trust me with your life, regardless of what is happening around you, financially, with your children, marriage, ministry, with everything?

   Will you trust me to see you through to the other side safe and sound, just like I did with the Israelites when I brought them out of Egypt?  Will you trust me that I do have your best interest at heart?”

 As I prayed and sought the Lord on this issue, I believe that he gave me his assurance that I absolutely could trust him with everything. He filled me with His peace that truly does defy all understanding; I cannot even begin to describe the feeling of peace and rest that I felt and still feel.

 Then I realized what God had done for me, He had shared with me His valuable truth:

  The truth was that if I willingly laid all of my fears of disaster into his capable hands, he would see me through to the other side of the “river” I did not have to fear as I knew that he was taking care of me.

 Regardless of whether I have money in abundance or only a little, God never leaves me; he is always guiding me to the next provision for my needs, like milk that he sends through a friend, clothing for myself through an unexpected source, money for groceries, and the list continues.

I have watched in amazement since that time of surrender, that what looked like a dry well with nothing was coming out of it; God’s miraculous provision for my family, with abundance for us to be able to bless others as well.

 I have discovered that when we enter into His rest, we enter into the realm of a supernatural assurance that he is most definitely who He says he is, that He without a doubt will take care of me to the very day that He takes me home to be with Him.

 I had lived with a faulty belief that at some point that God was going to make everything come crashing down around me, and literally rip the carpet out from under where I was standing.

God tells us in his word that there is no darkness in him whatsoever, which means that he does not have ill will in store for me. Yes, if I need to be disciplined by him because of my disobedience to him and his word, He as a loving father will do so. That discipline, however harsh it may be, will bring about a restoration between Him and I. Therefore it is a good thing.

 But I was truly waiting for the big stick of disapproval to be brought out.  That my friend is not the right image, of who God is, that is a distorted image placed there by the Devil who delights in lies and strongholds.

 The truth is God loves us so much that He wants what is best for us; he wants to show his mighty and passionate love for all who don’t know him, through us, his children.

 I have discovered that in resting in Him, I am fully capable to do anything that He asks me to do, because His precious Holy Spirit is living within me and will empower me with the right tools and talents to accomplish the will of my Heavenly Father.

  I am capable of trusting Him to supply all of our needs, knowing that he will show us whom to speak to, what to do, and how to do it, to bring in the necessary finances into our home. It will not be a struggle and a begging, but it will feel like the doors literally open for us and we get to walk with confidence through them.

 I realized that resting in Jesus; really means to put our surrendered trust fully into who He is as our God, to literally trust him from our toes up. Not to struggle, but to enjoy the process.

 So I pray for each of you, that God will truly open up your eyes to this important truth, that you will discover that God really is who He said He is, that He can do what he says He can do.

That He can do it well and in the right timing and that He has enabled you to walk through the process of Faith with your head held high, as His precious child.

 My dear brothers and sisters, lay all of your fears, frustrations  and lost dreams down at his feet and I know that He will without a doubt give you the same kind of assurance that He has given me; the He will without a doubt take care of you until He brings you home to be with Him.

God bless you

 

 

 

 

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