“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” (Jeremiah 33:3) .
I recently spent a weekend in Dallas with New Life Ministries, facilitating a group of eight incredible women who were willing to risk their lives- Not risking life and limb with an adrenaline rush, like parachuting, but by taking the risk of being real and being known.
They took this risk in front of people they had never met, but who shared one common goal -emotional freedom. One by one they began taking off masks, revealing parts of self which had been hiding. They risked rejection and, in the process, discovered their brilliance.
Over the span of 48 hours, each person shared their story of desperation to know God and His healing love. It became evident that part of His answer to their call was to show them some unknown part of themselves.
Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would lead and guide us into all truth. I am convinced that the closer we get to God, the more we learn about ourselves. He is Light and He shines the light of awareness on parts of self that have been in the shadows. We think we know who we are until God reveals self from a different angle.
I don’t know about you, but there are times when the Holy Spirit leads me to a truth about myself, and I am uncomfortable. At times my reaction to these discoveries has been to stubbornly resist or to try harder in my own strength. As I saw a different response in this group of brave hearted women, my own resolve to respond to God through SURRENDER deepened.
I witnessed these women share things that had been hidden. They faced the lie that we have to protect ourselves from feeling pain. They were living proof that when we respond to God in obedience, things often get messy and we feel out of control, before things get better. There will typically be a season of wilderness before we can enter the Promised Land.
As they took the challenge to risk their lives on the ‘emotional surgery table’, with no anesthesia, transformation occurred. They sought God’s perspective, accepted the truth of their reality, began the grieving process, and found strength and comfort from each other. They experienced a loving connection with self, God, and others, through the soothing balm of grace. The miracle of a new life was the result.
“Search me, O god, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24)
During my weekend in Dallas, it seemed that God decided to search many of US, and know all of OUR hearts, before we got to see God be God and do what only He can do.
Until next time, Blessings~ Deborah
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