Vision that speaks

Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.   Deuteronomy 31:6

 The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?  Psalm 27:1

Has someone said “No” to you lately? How did it make you feel? We have all experienced rejection in life. We have all had “I’m not good enough “ tears run down our faces, while we wreck our brains to make sense of the whys. In a moment, all it takes to derail me is one discouraging word from someone else, their view of me, their perception and vision of my life.  One word ushers in all the doubts available on the market in brightly wrapped packaging. As I rip into these untruths and peruse their value, I eagerly unpack all the reasons that I am not enough. Oh, how often I find myself wondering where I could have done more and have been more, to accomplish more. But more often than not, if I am honest, I can confirm this to be my striving to gain notoriety with people, to be accepted, seen, invited, and included. So often I wish others could see my calling, acknowledge my worth, confirming that I have a purpose. In these moments I am convinced that if people give me a ‘yes,’ it is confirmation of my worth and calling, arguing that God’s word needs the agreement of others to make it true and valid. IF you can relate to this, I want to remind you today, dear friend, the word of God over your life needs only your agreement. It carries the authority of heaven, and your life has been bought at a most invaluable price. No man can add or take away from this.

Often times, I have interpreted rejection as a hallmark of God’s disapproval; I confound man’s disapproval with God’s, thinking if they said no, it was because He said no. If the common response to me in a scenario, or something I am attempting, is negative, I often interpret it as God’s ‘NO.’ This is problematic in various ways. Firstly, this ascribes God’s intentions towards the situation without actually consulting Him, and also assumes that His answer is generally reflected in people’s behavior. This is not necessarily so.  I am not saying that God’s answers to us is never NO, I am saying that we need to be careful to not interpret people’s opinions as God’s divine word to us. Imagine Jesus in the wilderness. He had just been baptized by John, the Holy Spirit descended on Him, and the Father had audibly confirmed Jesus’ identity in front of witnesses. God had spoken over Him a purpose, a truth, placed a marker on Him, and solidified His calling. Yet, it is right after this momentous happening that the enemy comes. What is significant is that the devil comes to challenge Jesus’ identity. The very thing God had made Him to be and then confirmed with a spoken word. Pay attention to the significance here, the timing and sequence. Jesus had a word from the Father. Jesus’ sonship had been affirmed, His identity confirmed, His calling aligned with the purpose of the Father, and the Father’s approval had marked Him as chosen. This is true for you when God speaks over you. The word God has given you as affirmation, making your calling sure, affirming you as His child, approving of you for ministry, confirming that you belong to Him. And it is these very words that come under severe attack, become scrutinized into minute detail, and be inquisitively questioned by the enemy. He attacks your identity, by questioning what God has spoken. People questioning your worth, your identity, your calling is not a sure sign that you are on the wrong track. Believe what He has said over you. One of the greatest forms of worship is coming into agreement with Him. Allow your heart to hear His words to you, today. Bind it around your chest, carry it close, treasure it, and believe it, because He is trustworthy.

This week I want to challenge you to be brave, to stand on His word. If you have a specific word God has given you, whether personally or through someone else, please take this week to intentionally stand on it and pray it back to God. I want to challenge you to set out time this week to think on His word, set out time to meditate on it, to pray over it, to take courage to believe God for it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak and not lie! Wait for it!

For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak and not lie. Though it tarry, wait for it, because it will surely come; it will not tarry. Habakuk 2:3