I know it's Christmas but....
I know it is Christmas, but can I talk about Easter? :-) Every "spiritual" person is always taught that God is everywhere. His presence is everywhere because He's God. I think this understanding of God is good. It's very correct in alot of ways. God is a God that fills up this world - He is everywhere.
If God can be a God that can be everywhere, can He also be a God that removes His presence as well? Are there places that He actually left? Are there places that though He may be with the person at all times, does He have to be in the actual location that the person is at? This is so important.
When Jesus is raised from the dead, people looked for Him in the tomb. Their instinct was to find Him where He was for 3 days. This is common sense. Why would you go anywhere else to find a dead person? An angel appeared and told them (to a group of women for all you feminists - women were notified first) that He had risen and left the tomb. You can't find Jesus in a tomb anymore.
Many of you are struggling - and rightfully so. I am with you. I feel myself in the same predicament. The problem is that we assume that God is in places that He chooses not to be. God will always be with you - but He won't necessarily be in the things and decisions that you are forcing Him to be in. You want to find God in the tomb, but He already left. The tomb is your past. The tomb is your dream that is not going to come true because it's not for you - there's something better. Statements like the one I just said can be misinterpreted to mean "dreamkiller." - Not at all - Real dreams are things that come true - if they didn't happen, they weren't real - they were a disillusionment. The tomb is your comfort zone that you don't know how to be without. When you beg God to be somewhere that He chose to leave, you are wasting your time - you are wasting away your destiny.
We always want to resurrect things that are not meant for us. Don't resurrect an unhealthy relationship - end it. Don't resurrect the past - move on. The interesting thing about Jesus leaving the tomb, is that the angel excitedly tells the women that He has gone ahead of them to Galilee. He went before them. The radical thing about God is that He constantly goes before us. He is not bothered by the fact that His children are looking for Him where He already left. He still does His thing - He goes to where He wants to go - the exciting thing is we can follow. We can be where He is - we don't have to force Him to come to places that He left already.
We can leave the tomb, knowing that our God has gone before us to a brand new place -for a brand new reason - always for our own sake. He is the God of new beginnings, new adventures, and new purposes. His dynamic quality to do this and never change is something our humaness will never figure out. I find that full freedom comes when we leave the dead behind. When we allow the dry bones to bury themselves. Our attachment to the tomb is a sickness - We need a real resurrection inside of us. We need a brand new wiring for our instincts to go where our God goes before us.
This Christmas, my prayer for you is that you are able to exit the tomb. Don't look for God where He's not. Don't look for an answer behind a locked door. Your 25th of December can be life changing. Your Christmas can be different this year - if you go where He is. Peace, and much love to you - John Baptist!
If God can be a God that can be everywhere, can He also be a God that removes His presence as well? Are there places that He actually left? Are there places that though He may be with the person at all times, does He have to be in the actual location that the person is at? This is so important.
When Jesus is raised from the dead, people looked for Him in the tomb. Their instinct was to find Him where He was for 3 days. This is common sense. Why would you go anywhere else to find a dead person? An angel appeared and told them (to a group of women for all you feminists - women were notified first) that He had risen and left the tomb. You can't find Jesus in a tomb anymore.
Many of you are struggling - and rightfully so. I am with you. I feel myself in the same predicament. The problem is that we assume that God is in places that He chooses not to be. God will always be with you - but He won't necessarily be in the things and decisions that you are forcing Him to be in. You want to find God in the tomb, but He already left. The tomb is your past. The tomb is your dream that is not going to come true because it's not for you - there's something better. Statements like the one I just said can be misinterpreted to mean "dreamkiller." - Not at all - Real dreams are things that come true - if they didn't happen, they weren't real - they were a disillusionment. The tomb is your comfort zone that you don't know how to be without. When you beg God to be somewhere that He chose to leave, you are wasting your time - you are wasting away your destiny.
We always want to resurrect things that are not meant for us. Don't resurrect an unhealthy relationship - end it. Don't resurrect the past - move on. The interesting thing about Jesus leaving the tomb, is that the angel excitedly tells the women that He has gone ahead of them to Galilee. He went before them. The radical thing about God is that He constantly goes before us. He is not bothered by the fact that His children are looking for Him where He already left. He still does His thing - He goes to where He wants to go - the exciting thing is we can follow. We can be where He is - we don't have to force Him to come to places that He left already.
We can leave the tomb, knowing that our God has gone before us to a brand new place -for a brand new reason - always for our own sake. He is the God of new beginnings, new adventures, and new purposes. His dynamic quality to do this and never change is something our humaness will never figure out. I find that full freedom comes when we leave the dead behind. When we allow the dry bones to bury themselves. Our attachment to the tomb is a sickness - We need a real resurrection inside of us. We need a brand new wiring for our instincts to go where our God goes before us.
This Christmas, my prayer for you is that you are able to exit the tomb. Don't look for God where He's not. Don't look for an answer behind a locked door. Your 25th of December can be life changing. Your Christmas can be different this year - if you go where He is. Peace, and much love to you - John Baptist!
g-vo, i dont know how but these posts come at just the right time! dont ever stop
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