"Thou wilt show me the path of life: in Thy
presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore."
Psalms 16:11
"Did
you know that there is actually a place you can go where your inadequacies will
totally melt away, where your sorrows are turned into joy, and that is the only place where you can find out what you were put on this earth to do? This 'wonder-filled'
place is the presence of God." -
Keith
The following verse in Psalms gives us one of the most
profound instructions in all of the Bible concerning the importance of pursuing
and living in the presence of God. “He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall
abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalms 91:1)
In order to better understand
what this means, let’s take a moment and break this scripture down. The first statement,
“He that dwells in the secret place of the most high” means the one who makes
his home, or lives in the presence of God. The second part, "shall abide
under the shadow of the Almighty” means to live our lives in the place where
God protects, heals, provides, teaches, frees, changes, and so much more. In God’s
presence, and only IN God's presence, will we reap and enjoy the benefits that
come with Him and being in relationship with Him.
It is crucial at this point to
note that our entrance INto The Secret Place is a result of diligently seeking
God with our whole heart, for the secret place is reserved for those who love
Him and are thankful to Him for Who He is more than for what He does, or can do,
for us. We must "abide" or "live IN" God!
Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit
of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in Me.
I am the vine, ye are the branches: he that abides in Me, and I in him, the same
bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not
in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast
them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in Me, and My words abide
in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is My
Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be My disciples.” (John 15:4-8)
The primary reason there are so
many disillusioned people in our churches today is simply because they practice
"periodic visitation" much more than they do "permanent
residency." Everything God does is for the purpose of establishing ongoing
relationships, having one-ness, with each one of us - a Father/son or
Father/daughter relationship.
When we allow ourselves to
become more focused on God's miracles or His deeds than on God Himself, we have
allowed ourselves to be separated or severed from our source of life; and we
will wither and die as Jesus teaches us. Paul, in his letter to the Romans
addressed that very thing when he said, “They worshipped
and served the creature more than The Creator.” (Romans 1:25) This is in
fact the birthplace of idol worship and dead religion. This is where style
becomes preferred and sought after more than substance, where more attention
and effort is placed on seeking signs and wonders, or on doing things a
particular group’s way, than on pursuing God Himself.
Herein lies the root cause of
the Church’s declining effectiveness in our communities! Paul, dealing with this
same problem in Corinth said, “And what agreement
hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as
God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God,
and they shall be My people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye
separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive
you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters,
saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:16-18) We are to be
separate from everything and everyone that would keep us from being separate
unto God. Never forget, sin is anything that separates us from God! This
includes miracles. God does not intend for miracles to distract us from Him.
Never before have so many kinds
of distractions, including miracles, made it so difficult to stay focused on
the Lord. Deceptive armies of anxious spirits are laying siege to the minds of
anyone who succumbs to their temptations, and their major objective is our complete
and total separation from our loving Father.
Whether through the media, those
closest to us, substance abuse, trying to do too much too fast, the love of
money, being bound by the chains of indebtedness, striving for material
possessions, or just the hustle and bustle of everyday routines, the battles to
steal, kill, and destroy our relationship with our God and King have never
raged hotter. Jesus Himself said, “The thief cometh
not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” (John 10:10) Satan knows
full well that his days are numbered and that anyone who presses their way INto
The Secret Place will be one less notch that he can carve into his gun stock.
Satan hates anything and anyone who brings pleasure to God, and will spare no
expense in doing whatever it takes to separate us from Him. If we are going to
develop and maintain the ability to live our lives in the presence of God, we
are going to have to master the art of "staying focused on Him" as a lifestyle.
There is a little saying that
goes, “Pursuit is the proof of desire.” Luke put it this way, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Luke 12:34) In other words, what you truly want, you will
pursue. My Dad used to say, “Keith, isn’t it amazing how people, no matter how
poor or busy, seem to always find the money and/or the time they don't have to
do what they really want to do.” It’s just a fact – without the “want to” we will
never find our way INto The Secret Place. At any and all cost, we must stay focused on God. Paul addressed this
when he said, “Pray without
ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Contrary to popular
belief, this is possible!
Always remember, there is nobody
or nothing worth your relationship with God! Peter admonishes us “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore
sober, and watch unto prayer.” (1 Peter 4:7) We must be clear-minded
and self-controlled so that our communication with God is never interrupted!
Failing to reach the secret place is only caused by allowing our focus on God
to be broken. We must stay focused!
Have you ever given any thought
to why the Scriptures would say, "But when the fullness of the time was
come, God sent forth his Son" (Galatians 4:4a)? As I was praying about that, the Holy Spirit whispered something
to me that I hadn't thought of before. What
I saw was that, in order for the people to understand what Jesus would be
saying concerning the Kingdom of God, Kingdom protocols, etc. there must first be
a point in time when kingdoms were established in the earth. So, when Jesus came preaching of the Kingdom
of God, the people were able to understand what He was saying. Before we can dwell with God, we must learn this
most important Kingdom protocol by which God designed the Kingdom of Heaven to
operate. God’s Word is clear when He
directs us to “enter his gates with thanksgiving and enter his courts with
praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.” Any deviation from this
crucial Kingdom protocol, will result in our stopping short of a close, loving
relationship with God and, as Jesus prayed in the garden, oneness with our
Heavenly Father – us in Him and Him in us.
Now, are you ready to make your pledge to enter
"INto The Secret Place"? Print
the declaration below, sign it, and put a copy in your wallet or purse, on your
refrigerator, bathroom mirror, and everywhere you look, to help keep you constantly reminded to stay focused on your Destination.
THANK YOU for downloading this weekly blog message today! We pray God will use it to bear tremendous blessing in your
life!
You can find this message in its entirety, along with 11 others, in Keith's (printed or audio) book Letters From The Front available at TowardTheMark.com.
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