The Wanderer

Last night, I was out of town, so I watched the live stream for The River. I’m glad I did.

Rejoice evermore.

Pray without ceasing.

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Quench not the Spirit.

Despise not prophesyings.

Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

Abstain from all appearance of evil.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22

Quench not the Spirit… 

Quench: to be suppressed or extinguished. The Greek word is used in the Bible when talking about fire. I find this interesting as the Holy Spirit came as tongues of fire in the book of Acts. We are not to quench the Holy Spirit with false teachings or disobedience. We disobey and quench His fire when we do not put Him first. By doing so, we deny Him, replace His goodness with something temporal, and make that “thing” an idol. It can be a thought, an idea, a dream, something, or even someone. That thing does not have to be necessarily bad; worshipping those things with your time makes the good thing an idol. For example, friendships are not bad. The Bible praises them. However, when you place those friendships and what they say about you above what God has already called you, you make that friendship an idol. Whatever we pursue more than Christ has replaced His place as God on the throne of our hearts.

We do the same when we grieve the Holy Spirit. We put ourselves first and idolize fear and rejection more than obedience. Often, when we want to obey, it is not hard. We are ok with sacrificing because we do not have to give up much. It “counts” when we have to step out into the fog, not knowing where the next step is. When we have to forego reason and trust in Him, that is faith. I have been slowly learning this year that, often, when we are prepared, God says no. When we are not prepared, He calls us and says go. It’s just like in the Chronicles of Narnia when the Kings and Queens did not feel qualified; that’s when He called them. He waits for His Glory to be shone. We often must wait until the landing strip clears. Sometimes we even have to clean up some of ourselves for Him to work. We have all this junk in our lives. We can’t pull Him in without kicking something else out. Jesus was obedient to death. We must die to ourselves and yield to His Spirit to quench the devil’s flaming arrows of doubt.

If God tells you to wait, you’re in good company. Moses waited for 40 years. Joseph had to wait before he was released from prison. The nation of Israel waited 70 years. Abraham waited for his promise of a son.
The process of waiting tests how much we believe in the Lord. It’s a time of testing and growth that many miss because they are focused on what they don’t have. Don’t forget that your Saviour and Lord, your Creator and Maker, has a plan for your life. Whether you follow it is up to you, but I promise it is worth all the pain and tribulation. The greater you sow, the greater you reap.

Wait. Be patient, for the Lord will fight for you. Worship in the hallway so that Satan does not have victory.