NLC Pastor Appreciation Lunch

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(You can drop off your item or stay and serve.)

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Today, I give up

I give up.
I have finally come to that place of empty of myself and totally completely dependent on Jesus. 

I know that most of my life I have thought of those 3 words as negative fighting words. I have been seeking, resting, soaking up the Lord for a few solid years now. But last night in middle of the restless night I truly surrendered. As I laid there the sweetest tone whispered Thank You for giving up. 

I love how one of the things I have been seeking is learning how to rest in the finished work of Christ. I know that the journey is different for each of us. How cool is that? I think really cool.. You see we are each uniquely created and so it stands to reason that we will each be unique in the way we find rest, comfort, and the love of Jesus!

Okay, so the thoughts I have today as I type is that I am going to Trust the sitting stage with Jesus. I will sit here and learn to accept WHO I am. I am seated with Christ, I am a daughter of the King, I am redeemed, whole, forgiven, justified, healed, and strong....but ONLY because of Jesus being crucified and raised from the dead to bring Everlasting LIFE to me and others who choose Him. (I pray and hope that is you too)

My journey is still in the beginning stages of learning to be with Jesus. That makes me giggle because actually it has been many years of me learning to just be the girl He the Creator created. I know that once I truly love just sitting with Him and never forget that I am completely dependent upon Him for everything at ALL times. As I just wait and let that become my life then He will call me forth to WALK this out. 

The "this" is the Who I am in Jesus Christ. As I walk along I am positive I will still be learning and building upon the Firm foundation of Christ that I let Him dig, pour, and cure when I was in the sitting stage. Then there will come a day that I will be asked to stand for Him. 

I don't build houses or anything but my natural mind sees this spiritual truth like a building being built. It has stages. We built a house once 16 yrs ago. The first things that happened was the removing of debris getting the sight even and ready to put in the water pipes before the foundation was poured. Then after the concrete was poured it had to be smoothed. 

Again, you had to wait before any other work could be done. It seemed like forever and it still ended up not perfect in size or without cracks. 
(Kinda like me while I have been sitting, waiting ;) But the builder said it had cured enough to begin the rest of the structure.

That was when so many different people walked around putting everything in its proper place to hold up the weight of the roof, brick, sheet rock, cabinets etc... The things that protect, cover, give shelter from the weather, hold the things that you need and are precious. Then when a house is finished and you move in all your precious things, Gifts come as a house warming. After all that, you may still find out, Like I did, in the natural and spiritual that the foundation is still sitting waiting to be completely firm and cured. Fun Fact for concrete to dry all the way it can take an enormous amount of time; it depends on how deep and thick. 

I know that God intends on us to have a very thick firm foundation built in Jesus finished work. So I can only think this may take some time to be a firm enough foundation for Him to start adding the weighty things. 

Don't misunderstand I know that the Holy Spirit is given to us the moment we call upon Jesus as Savior. That isn't weight because that person of the trinity lifts us, encourages, comforts, guides, directs. I in my personal opinion don't think the Holy Spirit becomes weight until the gifts are brought to the house structure.

The words I give up are such deeply positive words to me and are so refreshing and filled with Hope and Life. I pray that you understand these words I just wrote are my thoughts about what this means spiritually for me.

I don't intend them to mean anything to anyone else. If they do great, I am glad that they aren't useless to you. But for one of the rare times I am okay if others think they are useless and meaningless. They mean everything to me today!

I have called out to the sovereign Lord to recuse me, to uphold me with His right hand, and to wash over me a true, just, right, and pure rest. So that,I may Stand as a pillar of Jesus strength on the day He says to do so.

Apart from Jesus...I am nothing...In Jesus Christ...He is MY everything...I am His everything!
 

Sonya