know how to live

have you ever baked banana bread? or scones? any baked good?!

baking requires exact measurements for it to come out great, so using a recipe is wise if you want a moist bread or gooey cookies.

in a recipe, there is an ingredient list complete with measurements for each ingredient, and a numbered list of directions of what to do when with those exact measurements, including the number to preheat the oven to & the amount of minutes to put the tray in the oven for. it’s all there.

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”

Psalms 23:1

when the Lord is our shepherd, we shall not want. we lack nothing. there is nothing missing. though it can feel like we lack, the truth is we have everything.

so, what is the recipe in your life? you already have every ingredient available in the Holy Spirit, but what is the *how* and the *when*  in applying what God has given you? what do we do with what God gave us & how do we do it?

God wants to give each of His children their recipe. the Bible says to ask for wisdom.

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all without hesitation and without reproach; and it will be given to him.”

James 1:5 TLV

ask God for your recipe.

He’s given you EVERYTHING. now you must partner with Him to produce fruit. like a recipe, ask for the directions. ask to know what to do with what you’re given!

God longs for His kids to pursue Him.

our instructions from the Lord can differ season to season, but just ask Him, right now, what to do when.

God wants to give you instruction.

just receive.

Matthew 11:29 says—to be taught by God. God The Giver, The Maker, The Author, The Creator! just come to Him, cleave, be with Him, Enjoy His Presence. He’ll do the rest.

the unknowing

going forward in God is a lot like a squirrel with hundreds of hidden nuts. the closer you get to God, the more quiet you become, the more you live in the secret place, He whispers things to you & you no longer feel the need to tell another human, instead you hide it in your heart.

 there are things we think we know. but really we need to unknow what we think we know, so we can actually know. anything we think we know, we do not. & until we’re willing to admit & recognize we don’t know, we can’t receive a thing. but when our eyes are opened to see we know nothing, then we can begin to truly receive.

 what do you have that you did not receive? 1 Corinthians 4:7

go be His, Rest. know you are loved & let that love fill you to full.

 stars sparkle & shine in sync with Jesus. we’re called to shine too, but this light comes from being, not trying. rest & receive. then you will become, in Him.

know Abba. get undressed, take off, drop everything you were never given, so you can receive true knowledge.

bless, reflect the sunrise & live like light Himself dwells inside you

go, become in Him

this, is life. to know God.

but first we need to l o s e all we claim to know, all we think we have, so we can gain true. become in Him by submitting to Him & you will never lack, never fear, never be the same again. do you want strange, new, different? are you tired of thinking you know? then just fall down, where you are, & let Him strip you of gunk, so you can receive grace. it’s all gift!

this is what we need—to lose ourselves in Someone who desires to consume us completely like a fire, a fire of love. let Him have you.

 what do we have that we have not received?

know + go

For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am a man who has no strength, like one set loose among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. You have put me in the depths of the pit, in the regions dark and deep. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape; my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call upon you, O Lord; I spread out my hands to you. Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon? Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But I, O Lord, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you. O Lord, why do you cast my soul away? Why do you hide your face from me? Afflicted and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am helpless. Your wrath has swept over me; your dreadful assaults destroy me. They surround me like a flood all day long; they close in on me together. You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.”

Psalm 88 ESV

Do you know how you need healed?

“Yahweh claims the world as his. Everything and everyone belong to him! He’s the one who pushed back oceans to let the dry ground appear, planting firm foundations for the earth. Who, then, is allowed to ascend the mountain of Yahweh? And who has the privilege of entering into God’s Holy Place? Those who are clean—whose works and ways are pure, whose hearts are true and sealed by the truth, those who never deceive, whose words are sure. They will receive Yahweh’s blessing and righteousness given by the Savior-God. They will stand before God, for they seek the pleasure of God’s face, the God of Jacob. Pause in his presence So wake up, you living gateways! Lift up your heads, you doorways of eternity! Welcome the King of Glory, for he is about to come through you. You ask, “Who is this King of Glory?” Yahweh, armed and ready for battle, Yahweh, invincible in every way! So wake up, you living gateways, and rejoice! Fling wide, you eternal doors! Here he comes; the King of Glory is ready to come in. You ask, “Who is this King of Glory?” He is Yahweh, armed and ready for battle, the Mighty One, the invincible commander of heaven’s hosts! Yes, he is the King of Glory! Pause in his presence”

Psalms 24

Do you know Him who fills? When you feel the broken, do you try to paste the pieces together yourself? Do you pretend you’re okay? Or do you go to God? Just fallapart at His feet!  He will touch you & you will be well.

Know the Lord. Become. Belong. Believe. Partake of Real.

What is the food of God?

“Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.””

John 6:27-40, 47-51, 53-58 ESV

What is God saying here in John 6? Ask Him. Receive from Him for yourself. Know. Go. & all out of Be-ing. This, is the life of God.

lily pad well

the sweet repose of a water lily paints a picture of stillness & rest.

a refuge, for frogs & dragonflies, insects of all families, to pause.

the green leaf only a glimpse of the plant, as long stems wind down to pond bottom where roots nestle, a hidden network. it’s through secret connection the flower floats & flourishes, through this abiding deep below the water, all things flow.

rest is enjoyed, by many, because the water lily is planted, tucked in & secure in a deep place only it knows.

because of this, it grows & it provides a place of refreshment for the world around it.

in all this, its quiet strength is an invitation to you & to me to come & be.

another picture of abiding like the architecture of the lily pad, is a well. A string connected to a bucket pulleys down, drawing on the depths of the springs of water.

like the water lily, may we have secret hidden stems that sweep down, anchoring & connecting us to Life Himself, apart from whom we can do no thing. & from this place of abiding, we enjoy rest & are made into rest for those around us to be refreshed to be renewed, to pause & be a while.

 may the life hidden in us become a living spring, welling up to water the world around us with beauty, rest, & love.

 may we lily pad & draw on Jesus well—today, & each day.

pocket

what’s in your pocket?

I don’t mean your jeans or purse, but the space available. we’re all, in a sense, pockets, in that we hold finite, numerable amounts. pockets.

what’s in your pocket? what’s in your heart, your mind, what occupies your space & time? what’s in you?

 the Bible says out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. what’s in you will come out. what’s coming out of you, & therefore what’s inside? if you’re saying some not nice things, like complaining, worrying, gossiping, being mean with your mouth, go to God. because that is an indicator of an area of your heart that needs touched by Yeshua. out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks it says. be aware.

 what’s in your pocket? if in your literal pocket, you have, say a phone & keys, would there be space for sunglasses? probably not. what is there—the phone & keys—occupy the available area, not allowing something else like sunglasses in. in the same sense, we have limited heart real estate. you can’t have space for it all. if your heart is occupied by clutter—worldly noise & the din & chaos of here— you won’t have space inside for Heaven.

we must empty ourselves, to make room for Him.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

heaven belongs to those who recognize their need to be emptied.

for every lie there is a truth. for every piece of junk occupying room in our hearts, there is a treasure longing to take its place.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2 ESV

we must identify the lies & in their place, look for that which is true.

we must allow ourselves to be undone, unraveled & start completely over. square one. only then can we be full of good & God.

 “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” John 3:3-8

take some time to inventory. what’s within? pray—talk to God. listen. seek. ask. see & let the Lord deal with your interior. let Him empty out those pockets of earth trash wrappers & manmade things, so you can have room for Him to make His Home within.

Lord, would You empty us. flip us upside down & empty our pocket of everything crammed in there! please! all the lollipop wrappers & lipstick, old gum wads & crumbs… the junk, trash, trauma, sin, flesh, evil, me-me-me-me-me… empty us so we can have space to receive anew. we want heaven—YOU! get all the room in us. become our home. be our heart. we just want You.