Not giving up
This past week I visited with two people who we have prayed for a number of times and have yet to see the miracle. We prayed again and yet we are still waiting for the breakthrough.
We often learn more in failure than we do in success. What do we 'really believe' about God? About His willingness and readiness to heal? About His goodness? Both of these families are Muslims. Both have encountered the Kingdom and have received a measure of healing for different conditions. However, both of them are still facing the need for a major miracle - one who is deaf, the other who is imprisoned in a wheelchair.
I don't change my theology to match my experience. I contend for my experience to come into further alignment with the Life of Jesus in the Word of God. Jesus wasn't lying when He said that "the same works I do, you shall do"? (even though countless millions of Christians act/live/expect as if he was lying and didn't mean that).
When I don't manifest a fruit of the Spirit, which happens all the time, I don't give up and say, "O.K., I guess I'm not supposed to be patient and so won't expect patience because I failed again". No - everyone knows such thinking is ridiculous. However, we often don't view healing gifts in the same way. Yes, it is true that this past week we saw no manifestation of 'gifts of healing' with these two Muslims. Since we know what God the Father is like by looking at the Life of Jesus (if you've seen me, you seen the Father), I know exactly what Jesus would do if He visited either of these families, and so this is what we pursue - the power of God, UNTIL we see the works that Jesus would do.
As one of my mentors told me a couple of years ago, "the gap between what you believe and what you have experienced needs to narrow". Lord, may it be so!!!!
We often learn more in failure than we do in success. What do we 'really believe' about God? About His willingness and readiness to heal? About His goodness? Both of these families are Muslims. Both have encountered the Kingdom and have received a measure of healing for different conditions. However, both of them are still facing the need for a major miracle - one who is deaf, the other who is imprisoned in a wheelchair.
I don't change my theology to match my experience. I contend for my experience to come into further alignment with the Life of Jesus in the Word of God. Jesus wasn't lying when He said that "the same works I do, you shall do"? (even though countless millions of Christians act/live/expect as if he was lying and didn't mean that).
When I don't manifest a fruit of the Spirit, which happens all the time, I don't give up and say, "O.K., I guess I'm not supposed to be patient and so won't expect patience because I failed again". No - everyone knows such thinking is ridiculous. However, we often don't view healing gifts in the same way. Yes, it is true that this past week we saw no manifestation of 'gifts of healing' with these two Muslims. Since we know what God the Father is like by looking at the Life of Jesus (if you've seen me, you seen the Father), I know exactly what Jesus would do if He visited either of these families, and so this is what we pursue - the power of God, UNTIL we see the works that Jesus would do.
As one of my mentors told me a couple of years ago, "the gap between what you believe and what you have experienced needs to narrow". Lord, may it be so!!!!
DJ, two of your comments stirred me.
ReplyDelete1. I don't change my theology to match my experience. . . .
2. The gap between what you believe and what you have experienced needs to narrow".
I needed to hear both of these statements. Good words!