Chasing the
Glory of God
by Sue Mead
Once
we have tasted, seen, or been in the midst of the Glory of God, nothing else
satisfies what our souls are hungry for. The Glory is tangible. The Glory can
be felt. People are made for God's glory. Before the fall, Adam and Eve were
covered and filled with God's glory. Everything is good in the Glory.
The
Hebrew word that is translated as "glory" is "kabowd". It
means: weight, splendor, copiousness, according to Strong's. What does the
weight of God's glory mean?
Once
years ago, I was bringing a carload of youth home from retreat. We were
following another car full of teens, coming from the same retreat. It was
before cell towers were everywhere and we were traveling through a very rural
place. The other driver flashed the lights of her car, our signal to pull over
so we could communicate. We were almost home, in fact going down the exit ramp
from the highway. I was thinking, "We are almost home. Couldn't what she
needed to tell me wait for another 10 minutes?" When she pulled her car
along side of mine, the car doors were flung open, and two teen-age boys,
usually quiet and gentle mannered, jumped out of the car and pointed up to the
sky. They were almost out of control, yelling, Do you see them? Do you see the
angels?" "No," I thought. As I yelled over to the pastor,
"Wish I did." I looked up to see one of the boys kneel down, with his
head to the pavement, worshipping God. I also saw the headlights of an oncoming
car. The last thing I remember thinking was, "I need to get him up out of
the road before that car gets any closer. At that very moment, something hit my
shoulder (Maybe one of those angels.) and I flew backward about five feet and
landed in a ditch. I couldn't move or talk. I heard the car stop, and a voice
yelled out of the opened window."What's going on here?" The teen
answered, "It's God. There are angels everywhere!" She replied to
him, "And what about that woman in the ditch??" He laughed, "God
is all over her." She rolled up her window, hit the gas, and left. My
friends ran over to me and tried to pick me up out of that ditch. Now, I know
I'm a little overweight, but the weight of glory on me was heavy. It took a
bunch of those high school students, to lift me up and stuff me in the van. I
was stiff as a board and couldn't bend. And I was heavy, very heavy. They took
me home and we prayed until daybreak: For our city, for our region, for our
state, and for our country. That was my introduction to the weightiness of
God's glory. So heavy that it took a team to lift me, so light I felt like I
could fly away. So heavy that I couldn't function physically, so bright I could
see dimensions away. So full of splendor, I never wanted that night to end. So
forceful, it caused most of those teens never to get far from God. The glory of
God that night changed all of our lives forever. These are wonderful memories.
A memorial stone in my mind to go back to and every time I think or talk about
that day, I burn with the fire of God inside. And the presence of God always
fills the atmosphere wherever I am.
Ex. 14:19-20 reads, "And the Angel
of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them; and the
pillar of cloud went from before them and stood behind them. So it came between the camp of the Egyptians
and the camp of Israel. Thus it was a cloud and darkness to the one, and it
gave light by night to the other, so that the one did not come near the other
all that night."
Guiding the Israelites
The
Glory of God was in the cloud that guided the Israelites from the land of
Egypt. The glory is protection for us, just as it was for the Israelites. The
cloud protected and provided a shade from the harsh sun in the daytime for the
Israelites as they journeyed through the wilderness. The Glory protects us
today from the harshness of the elements around us. The cloud hid the
Israelites from their enemy and kept them from being destroyed. The enemy often
lies to us and tries to convince us that the darkness will overtake us. That he
will win. In this place of contrast, the darkness can be very dark, while the
light is very light. It is a place of great spiritual conflict. The Glory
protects us from our enemies and hides us in the shadow of His wings. The cloud
was light that pointed out the way of escape and made possible a crossing over
for the escaping Israelites. The Glory lights our way and shows us the path
ahead. "This is the way, walk in it".
(Is. 30:21) We need the Glory of God to protect us and show us the way.
Ex. 19:16 "Then it came to pass on the third day, in
the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on
the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the
people who were in the camp trembled."
Sound
comes from the glory of God. Musical instruments prophesy. The Spirit of God
sings through their music. As we worship, the sound plays across the strings of
our hearts, causing our worship to our Creator to intensify. Our hearts awaken
to Him. We are taken up in the realms of His presence, where nothing else
matters except being with Him. In the Glory, there is the maturing of our
spiritual senses. The illumination from the Glory of God reveals things to us
in dimensions that were previously hidden from us. We become totally and
completely sold out, surrendered, and absorbed by Him. Praise erupts and shouts
of joy cannot be stopped. Prayer is like a breath, and revelation flows easily.
The noise of our songs rises like a weapon of warfare. The fear of the Lord
increases as He reveals what is really inside of us. Ps 110:10, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom".
Prov. 1:7 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of
knowledge." So with the increase of the fear of the Lord is
the increase of wisdom and knowledge. Intimacy with the Lord grows in the
Glory. He is the Glory. We are in Him and He is in us, in a tangible way. We
need the Glory of the Lord to bind us together in unity.
Atmosphere of the Glory of
God
The
Lord once gave me a vision of a flower opening up in a greenhouse, where the
atmosphere is conducive to rapid growth. He showed me that our hearts are like
that flower, closed up until the sun gives warmth and encouragement to open up.
When we are in the atmosphere of the Glory of God, our spirits are opened up as
we enter into the joy of the Lord. Revelation can be deposited in the very
inner core of our being. Then, as the flower closes up at nightfall, the seed
of the Word can be insulated in order to germinate. When we receive direct
revelation from the Lord Himself, we can always go back to that place in our
inner man as a memorial stone, to encourage us to chase the Glory. When we seek
Him, we are promised that we will find Him.
1 Kings 8:10-11, "And it came to pass, when the priests
came out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, so that the priests could not continue
ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of
the LORD."
When
the Glory fills the house of the Lord, it overwhelms us. Our plans go out the
window. All that is important is Him. Silence can be deafening. Supernatural
stillness invades the atmosphere. You can hear a pin drop. Sometimes so
intense, not even babies cry out. The air becomes electrified with the Glory.
Senses are heightened, spiritual eyes are opened, spiritual ears are unblocked,
the perfume of heaven takes over our nostrils. Fatigue is exchanged for
abundant energy. When our homes are filled with the Glory of the Lord, our
children are in peace. When we, as individuals are filled with the Glory, we
can have peace in the midst of turbulence. God stretches us out, like a tent.
He fills us up with light. We live in perilous times. God knew what He was
doing when He placed us in this generation. But if we don't keep our lives
filled with the Glory, our lights grow dim and we can't find our way, let alone
light the way for others who are lost. We need the Glory for holiness to the
Lord. "Pursue peace with all people, and
holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:" (Heb. 12:14)
Transformed in the Glory
In
the Glory, we are transformed. Hearts are healed. Bodies become whole. Minds
are stabilized. Addictions are broken. Demons flee. The impossible is now
logical. Dreams are resurrected from the ashes of disappointment. The breath of
God brings new life to destiny. The plans of the enemy are torn down and new
plans of success are drawn up. In the
Glory, we are given strength to go on to victory. We can never leave the place
of His Glory the same way that we came in.
"And it came to pass, when Moses entered the tabernacle, that the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses. All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshiped, each man in his tent door. So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle." (Ex. 33:8-11)
May God give us the grace to chase the Glory until we are in the thick of His Cloud. May we be like Joshua, found in the midst of His presence, in the midst of His Glory, as we are being conformed to His image, from the inside out. Glory to God in the Highest!
Sue Mead
Safe Haven