I’ve felt a charge going through my spirit for some time now. It’s changing some of what I post about, the focus, intensity, and boldness, and even the amount of time I spend in the Word searching out what God has been speaking to me about. One of our pastors at church said something that resonated with me: light doesn’t fight the dark, it obliterates it. That means that light doesn’t have to do anything except show up and darkness flees. So why does there seem to be so much darkness in the world – even in our own communities?
Like so many out there, my husband and I went to the movies to watch The Sound of Freedom. There was nothing political or religious in the movie, just the relentless call on a man’s life to rescue children from horrors that we can barely imagine. Through this movie, as well as numerous interviews with those connected to the movie and reviews from others who went public in support of the film, a light has entered a room that’s been in darkness for far too long. And the darkness hates the light.
After leaving the movie, drying my eyes and trying to wrap my head around the magnitude of what the movie conveyed, I had to remind myself over and over again that we’re not to live in fear. We’re to be courageous, bold, and full of moral fiber (II Timothy 1:7). I’ve learned that when I feel anxious, I need to pray. When I feel stressed, I need to worship and praise God. When I’m upset or in a bad mood, I need to give thanks. All these things that are counter to how I’m feeling literally counter those feelings. My light has been encouraged to burn brighter.
But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you. Matthew 6:33 NASB
My focus for the last few months has been about seeking God, getting into His Word, and making my relationship with Him my #1 priority (or at least higher on that list, right?). One of the things I’ve learned is that we vastly underestimate the power of our prayers. How do we see this power manifest, why aren’t we seeing it more, and why is it that we’re, instead, being crushed by the weight of the darkness that’s all around us? What is holding us back from being the type of people – God’s people – that the darkness flees from? Why do we have our lights set on a low dimmer? Light is not meant to be afraid of the dark.
In my post last week, C’est la Vie, I mentioned a few Christian-sounding things that we fall for without even realizing it. One that I believed for the longest time was that we can never really know God’s will. Another is that our prayers being answered is directly linked to our performance as Christians. I’ve been a Christian for a long time and even at my best moments of doing everything right, I was probably doing something wrong. Now, I’m not promoting a sinful lifestyle. Sin is bad for you and there’s nothing that will ever change that fact. Read it again: SIN IS BAD FOR YOU! But your position with God doesn’t change based on your performance (Romans 3:21-26, II Corinthians 5:20-21).
We are all literally making the wrong choices or thinking thoughts that are considered sinful. I’ve never known anyone who put God first at all times and in all things – there’s usually something that steals our focus, attention and affection. There are so many times that I put something or someone in front of God, but I’m still in right standing with Him. If there’s ever a feeling of being separated from God, it’s not because God has changed His opinion of us. As long as we’ve chosen to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, He looks at us in our mess and sees Christ’s righteousness.
God not only forgives our sins, but He also chooses to not remember them (Isaiah 43:25, Jeremiah 31:34). Sin is no longer an issue that separates us from God (Psalm 103:12). In Matthew 7:7, Jesus tells us to seek Him, and we’ll find Him. He wants us to ask Him for what we need, and He’ll give generously (beyond what we can ask or imagine!). Jesus even taught us how to pray (Matthew 6:9-13)!
Why do we think that the power of our prayer depends on our performance? Our perfection? Or whether or not it’s God’s will? What is God’s will and what does it have to do with the power of our prayers?
The word will is from the Greek word theléma (Strong’s Greek #2307) and means to desire, wish, a best offer that can be accepted or rejected. How I wish I could go back in time and learn this truth! God desires His best offer to be accepted by His children and wishes we wouldn’t reject His perfect plans for us.
God’s will is for His children to prosper, have hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11). He wants us to be joyful and pray to Him – to give Him thanks in all circumstances (I Thessalonians 5:18). His will is that all be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (I Timothy 2:4). God’s will is for us to have life and to have it to the full (John 10:10)! From the womb to the tomb, we are to have abundant life! That is God’s will! He wants that – He wills that – for all people! But not all will choose Him.
There are too many that have used the mystery of God to shroud His truth in shadow because they’ve experienced disappointment or they lack revelation. There are times that we can’t explain the why, so we make blanket statements in an attempt to control or to feel better about ourselves. Someone isn’t healed and we state that it must not have been God’s will. I don’t have all the answers, but I do know that God’s will is that all be saved and that’s not going to happen. Why? Because we have to choose. We have to choose life. We have to choose to put God at the center of everything, each and every day.
It’s risky to stand in faith. What if someone doesn’t get healed? Does that mean God’s Word isn’t true? No, God’s Word is true 100% of the time. We also should not make excuses that dilute the potency of God’s Word in an effort to avoid the possibility of looking foolish. When powerlessness and lack of confidence in knowing God’s nature is preached, the product is a dimly lit body of Christ. No wonder there’s so much darkness. I know that I’m not speaking for myself here, but being a dimly lit Christian is the last thing I want to be known for.
The life of a Christian is supposed to be littered with miracles (Mark 16:17-18). We should be seeing miraculous healings, people raised from the dead, food supplies multiplied, storms calmed, waters parted, and mountains moved. We’re supposed to be doing what Jesus did and more (John 14:12)! If all of this is true – and God’s Word says it is – how do we get there?
We seek Him – first. Before we call our BFF for advice, before we post our worries on social media, and before we Google-search anything, we seek God. We read our Bible more than we watch Netflix. We get to know more about the dramas in the Bible than the gossip at the gym, or dare I say it, the church. We. Seek. Him. First.
And His Word says that when we seek Him, we’ll find Him. When we seek Him and His righteousness, His light will shine through us and terrify the dark. It’s God’s will.