NumbersI am sure you have heard the quip: How do you eat an elephant? Answer: One bite at a time!
Of course, most of us aren't into eating elephant, but we get the point on how to tackle big problems. First you have to figure out what the problem is, and then you have to figure out how to deal with it for the purpose desired. You can even find schools to deal with some of those issues you face.
But you know, when you are lost and/or out of sorts, there is a lot you have to figure out, and sometimes "the manual" is not there. We look to people and the world around us but find they don't have all the answers to our questions. And many want or need their answer "right now!"
These days the internet helps us out a lot, but just because it's on the internet, is it really right? The "creative license" some take, will (and should) make you question that.
Blessed are the ones who know the Lord because at least SOME of their questions will get answers. But some will fall under others who will tell them how their life is supposed to be. Some are known as cults because you have to give up your own thinking for theirs. Some of those results can be tragic.
Life is hard! We have been blessed for a long season and now those are playing out in some respects because we don't know how to handle or maintain them. Many, like we see in world events, want to take over the blessings that are still there.
So that means that we have to get our guard up! We have to be seekers and figure out what is going to work best for us in the long run. And even then, do we know the future?
We have to realize that we can and should steward a lot of this ourselves! (Some have not been taught that!) No wonder Jesus had such big crowds when Rome was telling people on one side what they had to do and the clergy/Pharisees were on the other side with all their rules. Freedom can freak some people out!
I'm in my 70's now and internally I feel young, but my body is not always keeping up with it like it used to. When I can get physical things worked out (right meds, food, exercise, helps) I can feel quite zestful again. But because I have been forced to slow down on some things, it gives me time for reflecting on all the things I've seen and experienced. And being a writer, I am going to talk about it some!
I've been blessed to not only hear about a world beyond this one, I have also had a taste of it. I am not in despair because I do look forward to it. The experiences and foretastes I have had make me look for its full reality. But I have also learned that in eternity, experiences do matter, because there is a Spirit world going on, and there is an advantage in knowing the better way.
It's More than Just Faith
So many preach Jesus as a one-time inoculation, and they miss so much! And if you know science, some inoculations play out. How well "did it take" is an important question for both things good and bad.
Because it’s about more than just a faith that "someone else" manages. People who preach hard obedience to man more than the Spirit, often have agendas of their own self-preservation and sometimes at your expense!
But if you are planted by the living waters, your roots can reach out to many nutrient sources. The Pentecostals have a lot of awesome secrets, and many mainlines have a lot of wisdom! The mainlines tend to be richer, but their souls can seem quite dry and with many fewer miracles. And, if locked into their schools of thought, which many are, not only are the walls up, but the lack of unity is noticeable and even depleting.
It's why the youth are often the ones seen most at true revivals (that change mindsets for their generation). Their souls are seeking for the things that matter and that will sustain them and what they want to see. They don't want "revivals," they want "awakenings!" Problem is, we have a lot of pollution in the land that needs to be cleaned up!
And with so much fighting them, they have to call on a God who will answer them. My parents were mainline, and they weren't even that rich, but they could maintain life and raise their kids. I went Pentecostal and so while I am not rich in finances, I am rich in Spirit. I love the hidden treasures and I go seeking! And I will share many times what I learn as seed scattered along the way, you know, hoping the right ones will get it.
But take me back to my early years. I got visitations but I didn't understand them, and my parents didn't really want to talk about it. They came out of World War 2 and didn't want to think about doom and gloom anymore. That generation wanted to throw off the shackles, not think sacrifice 24/7, and enjoy the bounties life could give them. We had enough Bible in our lives that we could leave the doors and windows unlocked at night and not worry that someone was going to get the kids or our stuff!
If anything dramatic happened, the churches were ready to smoke it out and pray it through! Things changed when the television came through but in those days, air time began and ended with The Lord's Prayer and patriotism. But the generation budding was into exploratory mode!
Before, we wondered if the moon was made of cheese, and now we were sending spaceships and then people to orbit and then land and see! And today we have many satellites, and space stations, as you know. But God grew bigger to us, much bigger.
But OUR globe has not caught up with advancements as much as we should have. The concepts that grew us were not worldwide. We made a lot of progress but still not enough. Our problem spots were still those of "a land not sown" (see Jeremiah 2*) with the understandings that made us a right planet! We are still there today.
Learning to Walk with God
I see so many youth that are where I was before I discovered a personal God who could talk and guide me, but that fullness didn't happen over one night, but it grows continually. And relief from tragedies is much closer than it was back then. But it took time to seek and find what helped and soothed. And it takes people helping too!
I was reached because someone prayed. I was launched because I was taught to pray. I was able to be free enough that I could seek, and I did, and I discovered all kinds of things both good and strange, and I had access to things that helped me grow and mature and even help others.
When I was young and God visited, I didn't know what to do. I was hesitant to even talk about it. But I learned that being brave would help me to explore/seek and find! And there is a lot to find that you have to sort through.
And I learned that my soul had value, not only to me, but also to others. I could make a difference!!! And so, I still work at that while I am still seeking. It's the joy of God that you are not in a box, with tight boundaries, but you can know that the Spirit world is real, and the natural world can be my friend. But you always have to watch out for the enemies. Some paranoia could be wisdom, you know?
You learn over time how to walk with God. And it's exploring as much as it is learning the boundaries and figuring out the rules that work. Because sadly man will come up with a bunch of his own rules.
God will give you tastes and sometimes even visions of things to come! Your experiences can impart hope to others, younger or older. And you learn that the Spirit can prepare you for the worlds to come! Don't lose hope. This world is not all there is.
Find God in your soul and keep on learning. God has helps and even a vision for YOU! You matter to Him and if you can get THAT true understanding, you will find yourself as a world changer for the better.
And if you really mature, you will find the ways to overcome a lot of darkness. And you will find others on the journey for that too. You build a foundation in you that goes deep and wide. And then Heaven gets closer and closer! It's nice! So be blessed and be a blessing!
Pam Clark
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