Being motivated
by natural desires (the flesh) produces that which brings benefit to
ourselves, and to the general society in which we are connected, it can also be
termed as selfish-desires.
Don’t get me
wrong here, a lot of what we naturally pursue are good things, like careers,
relationships, etc., which give us an awareness that we are connected to this
world to contribute in ways which can be an asset to our situation and to our local economic
community.
We live in
the reality that we must work to somehow provide for our sustenance so that we
can have shelter and food to sustain life as we know it. Even though pursuing these things is crucial
to provide for our livelihood, it is still the motivation to fulfill our
desires to meet our daily requirements at the most basic levels.
The
spiritual life is a bit different but is not completely separated from the
natural pursuit of our livelihood, taking the time to acknowledge God in the
midst of our pursuits brings an element of faith to bear in on our lives which allow
us to look beyond what we can accomplish on our own and trusts that which is beyond our
efforts to achieve.
For example, many times when I was between jobs when no money was coming in even though I
was actively pursuing work, I was without an income to provide for my family or to
even make a house payment.
The economy
was so bad and work where I lived was difficult to find, so I began to engage in
conversation with God and put this matter before Him because I had no other
options other than to trust Him by faith for a better outcome than I was
getting.
Somehow even without work, I was able to make our house payment and we had ample provisions for the
month, this ended up being the reality I lived in for many months, somehow resources
would come outside of my natural efforts and abilities to provide which can only be
attributed to God meeting our needs at the time.
These type
of situations are faith-building knowing that God can meet our needs beyond
what we can see and/or provide.
The
spiritual life is separate but integrated into this natural life, it
doesn’t have to be religious or structural, it can be just casual and
conversational.
I believe the spiritual
life is no different than getting to know a friend who always stands beside you
and has your backside when you need Him most.
That is what
growing in the spiritual life is all about, getting to know Jesus who is closer
than a brother or a dearest friend.
Some friendships don’t last for
long, but there is one loving friend who is joined to your heart closer than
any other! Proverbs 18:24 (TPT)
Pursuing the
spiritual is truly about pursuing life, it is when the natural and the
spiritual are integrated that it is called abundant life (or a full life), and the result is amazing things
can occur. We can literally be changed
into people of faith who trust in what we cannot see, and knowing the realities of faith can penetrate into our lives in tangible ways.
On another level,
I have seen people who have needed healing from disease become restored, I have
also seen people who were drug addicts with hepatitis become fully healed and
totally clean from the disease. This is
when the spiritual meets the natural and God shows up and faith is released. Like I said earlier this isn’t about being religious,
but about being relational. God meets us
at our greatest need.
When Jesus entered the village of
Capernaum, a captain in the Roman army approached him, asking for a miracle.
“Lord,” he said, “I have a son who is lying in my home, paralyzed and suffering
terribly.” Jesus responded, “I will go with you and heal him.”
Matthew 8:5-7 (TPT)
Matthew 8:5-7 (TPT)
There are
times when the need is so great that we cannot do any more than we are able,
and we reach the end of ourselves and look God for help beyond our abilities,
He is always faithful to hear us and to respond in ways we can understand. It is at those times when God brings us
closer to Himself to trust Him and rely on Him to meet us where we are at.
That is the amazing thing about God, He never
requires us to be anything more than what we are. It is when religion gets in the way and
perverts that message that we lose the simplicity of who God is.
What is your
need today? Do you need healing? Hope? Provision? Or
just need the love of a friend?
God is there to meet
you at your greatest need, just reach out to Him in conversation and tell Him, He will hear you and meet you where you are.
Be Blessed;
Stephen
Barnett
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