Fearlessly Courageous
Desk of Dennis Piller
7 31 2023
Have you ever received .. something you thought was from the Lord but questioned yourself? Maybe it was this serendipitous occurrence or something someone said, and you thought; The Holy Spirit might be saying something to you, but you weren’t sure and, in a few minutes, or hours it was forgotten without a clear leading if it was or not. I have. Sunday, I received this word from the Lord and I wondered if it was me… due to some things I had heard earlier that day but Pastor Black’s sermon clearly gave me the confirmation that I had heard clearly.
He said, “The work I have for you cannot be successful in the flesh.- in your will or determination. It is only by my grace and walking in the spirit. I am doing something bigger and I need more than your heart. I need you to step into the deep spiritual waters right before you. Stop and listen. Let go of whatever you think and stop and see what I see. Pray and fast and zero in on my voice. Let my spiritual wisdom take over the carnal thinking that has crept into your sanctuary. Purify your thoughts, heart, and intent. Sometimes it hurts to let go of a good thing YOU want for the higher things of the Spirit. Press in with faith. Press in and crucify the flesh. Surrender everything and let me give you a fresh look – and a fresh vision. Let me give you a clear direction. Stop and wait on me!”
What is that saying to you? Would you stop right now and listen to that small still voice within you? Do you have just a moment to reflect…maybe search back over the last few days or weeks to an inkling of thought or a circumstance that might have given you pause? Please don’t be in a hurry.
We so often are rushing through life, busy at doing something, even if it’s to sit in front of that legendary boob tube. He is saying here…to wait upon the Lord! He has said several times to STOP and LISTEN. We know what it means but … we don’t.
I get the vision of standing in front of a minefield during a war somewhere, contemplating where to take the next step without getting blown up. We are not in a hurry then! Why are we hesitant to heed God’s calling? To Stop and Listen?
I think we have become so undisciplined to the things of the Spirit. We have become so polluted by the callings of the flesh that we crave something other than the purity of God’s word and the Holy Spirit’s direction.
Let me quote, 1 Corinthians 2: 14 “The natural person does not accept the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolish to him, and he is not able to, could not, understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
He clearly instructs us in this prophecy “to step into the spiritual waters of his wisdom”. In the natural, as an ordinary person, we cannot understand the things of God. Because God is spirit. Look at Romans 8:6 – “The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the spirit is life and peace. For the mind of the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law: indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
Look at these “two cannot’s” He said in his word to “let his spiritual wisdom take over the carnal thinking that has crept into your sanctuary!”. What does that mean to you? He says in the above scripture That the mind of the flesh “cannot” submit to god’s laws. And those in the flesh “cannot” please God. Are you getting a sense this is a wake-up call?
Sometimes we get our mind fixed on something that is good but it’s not what God is asking us to do. Edward Lewis Cole once said, “It’s easier to enter a new thing than it is to leave an old thing”. Often times we find ourselves immersed in a good service, a good ministry, in a good routine but when God asks us to make a change, we are resistant to that. Because we are emotionally invested…, we have hours of sweat and sacrifice poured into this endeavor. He’s saying here to let go, for higher things of the spirit. To press in by faith and to crucify the flesh and surrender this thing,.. everything… and allow God to give you a fresh look, vision, and clear direction. He says to stop and wait on me.
I don’t really want to say anything else to you this morning. But I would pray that you would take some time to heed this word to see what God is trying to tell you that’s different than what you’re doing right now. I am certain that this word is not just for me.
Lord, open up our minds, our hearts…our spirits today to receive A new vision or new direction and to let the past go. Help us to stop and listen! You asked us to “Pray and Fast” and to press into our faith so that we could see what you see… Holy Spirit help us. Give us the grace that we need to push through “this area of flesh that has invaded our sanctuary” and is keeping us from the fullness that you are calling us into… In Jesus’ name Amen
What a wonderful name it is Hillsong
