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Complete Anticipation

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“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.”

Genesis 1:2-3

It might seem a strange place to start when speaking of the Spirit, but I figure, might as well start at the beginning. And as it turns out, this is my favorite part. Imagine the Spirit of God, anxious with anticipation. God is about to unleash his best on this formless and dark place: the earth and our very souls. He’s about to proclaim light and breathe on it his limitless creative Spirit that has been there from the beginning of time. And as He breathes new life into these bodies He’s gifted us with, He fills up the empty yearning gaps inside us with none other than His Spirit! “Let there be light!” he says. I’ve got to add the exclamation because I can’t imagine it any other way. I’m trying to picture the sheer pleasure it must have been for the Spirit to witness what He was waiting for – beautiful streaming light in all directions. And I can’t imagine the Spirit any other way than when He takes residence in us. God’s own Spirit living in us, guiding us into truth and wisdom, searching out everything about us, tending to us and ushering us into God’s glorious light.

The Holy Spirit – perhaps the only claim to holiness we can cling to, is God’s gift to us. His Spirit, His light, His perfecting work in us to know Him.

And I’m in love with this fact – God is not far off – He is here, within me, and I can know Him. I do know Him because of His Spirit. He leads me to right wrongs, to listen to a wounded heart when I’ve got a really long to-do list and to rest in His presence and be still. He reminds me of my humanity and to love when it’s ever so hard because I am loved though undeserving. He comforts in my grief, He is counsel and might and knowledge and just when I think I get it, He reminds me of the mystery of the Father, Son and Spirit. And this makes me smile. The work will continue in me. I won’t ever be done learning or being shaped into the person He’s made me to be on this earth, but I do have a promise. I’ve got a mighty God, the very Spirit of Him who made the heavens, the earth and every person on this planet, living and working in me. And if He promises to come and live in me, He will see it all the way through to completion.

Posted by Janna Lynas with
Tags: anticipation, complete, light, sanctify
in Establish Faith

Knowing God

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The foundation of almost anything from buildings to business models lays the groundwork for what that structure will become. A company with a weak foundation of ethics will inevitably fail. A building with a weak foundation sags and collapses under its own weight. Starting with a solid foundation gives us the reason "why" in a process and allows us to move forward with confidence and hope. This is the same with our relationship with God. When our relationship is rooted in knowing God the Father, not just knowing about him, our foundation has the strength to endure.

Over the years I have lived in many different houses. Each house was built during different times with varying building standards. Our current house was built in the late eighties. When we first moved in several years ago I noticed a slight bow in the first floor. It soon became clear that there was a slight problem with the foundation. At first you don't notice everything that a foundation problem impacts. Over time you begin to notice things like windows and doors that don't close correctly or at all. Cracks develop where they shouldn't. These may seem like minor inconveniences but over time they can become big problems. Our relationships with God and others are much the same. If we do not start out at a place of trust, living out of a strong foundation, the cracks begin to develop and what once may have seemed solid begins to crumble. 

In school or training for a job or any lesson we learn it is important to experience the whole process. In recent years I have found that an instructor or mentor can talk to me about a process at work repeatedly, but until I actually walked through it myself the process remained abstract. Our relationship with God is similar. We can read His word or listen to sermon after sermon but until we truly enter into a deep intimacy with God we are just scratching the surface. When we experience this intimacy with God we are building the foundation for our life. The impact can be seen in the slightest detail, even aspects of our lives that we wouldn't suspect. 

Knowing about God and knowing God are two very different things. We can read biographies about historical figures. We could even be considered an expert about that particular person, but we would never know them like their families or loved ones did. With God we can read about him, but until God the Father is revealed to us through the work of the Son by the Holy Spirit, what we know about God are simply facts.

Knowing God in deep relationship impacts every aspect of our lives. It is foundational to who we are. When we begin to see cracks in our lives, it could mean that we have some foundation work to do.  

 

 

Posted by Chris Taylor with

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