There’s a cost for the deeper places in God. There’s a high price paid by those who desire to truly begin to be transformed into His likeness. There’s a high cost for walking in His presence day to day.
Have you evaluated that cost? Do you know the cost?
If you really desire to know and grow in depth with God…If you are to establish deep roots…
The cost is laying down your rights.
I know that our culture, even church culture, doesn’t teach or celebrate this, but it’s the truth.
It’s also the reason that many never truly know Him, and that breaks my heart. It really does.
When I first married my husband, I was in the midst of a huge healing season with God. In fact, I had just been introduced to healing prayer right before we met. That season was equal parts difficult and freeing. The time of transforming my heart from that of a wounded child into a fully functioning woman of God was priceless.
The cost in those days, was laying down my rights. Laying down the justice I felt was due to me and receiving God’s justice. It looked a lot like forgiveness. It felt a lot like freedom.
Jesus walked me through the most difficult parts of my childhood. As I released forgiveness in those moments, I would suddenly find Jesus there. He would speak truth. He showed me where He’d been when those things had happened. He gave me a true perspective. It’s like He came in and showed me the whole picture, when previously I could only see my pain.
The cost of heart healing was laying down my idea of what healing looked like and receiving God’s. It also looked like routing out the lie and believing the Truth.
As I grew and developed in my walk with God, the cost was laying down my rights to friendships that were unhealthy for me. When I invited Him to be Lord of my life, I meant it. This meant, not only trusting Him to provide a suitable husband for me, but also giving Him Lordship over every relationship in my life. Friends, family…all of it.
Then I was largely alone.
Apart from my husband, God cleaned house and removed every friendship I had and rearranged many familial relationships. This is a cost, I’ve paid multiple times. He always seems to be drawing some near and moving others away from my life. I’ve learned to not hold too tightly. Sometimes, God separates us because He wants to be our everything. Our confidant, best friend, love, Father…all of it.
The costs are high. The benefits are much greater.
Relationship with God is the sweetest and most fulfilling thing that I know. Are you willing to pay the cost?
Greater love has no one than this to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit- fruit that will last- and so that whatever you ask in My name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other. John 15:13-17
365 Days in the Presence 