There is a whole lot of freedom in not having to be anxious with expectancy for the Lord to perform the supernatural on cue according to our own self imposed grandiose, however severely limited, imagination. The gift of Faith of the Son of God produced within us by the Holy Spirit reveals within our being a peace and trust that only He could ever give us. His Spirit will always win the wrestling match. Listening to the Lord tell us to go left or right, stop or go forward, stand or get out of the way is not always easy when we have visions of grandeur born of unrealistic expectations because we have not endured the disciplines of the Lord that produces mature son’s. Truly our flesh wars against the Spirit and our minds are at enmity with Him until He works within us the ability to will and to do His good pleasure without question. In everything when it comes to most challenging circumstances our expectations never default to His expectations for us. We must be trained, disciplined and led by the Holy Spirit.
An immature Christian will cave and default to failure within uncomfortable trials and tribulations if left to their own devices. Without the Comforter and Helper to hold our hand as we walk through the fiery valley of ‘death’ to die, we would never come to the place where we are surrendered to the eternal Truth that the only safe place to be as a growing maturing son of God is upon the cross crucified and dying with Christ. However, once we learn to trust His voice and surrender to His Spirit led direction and advisement we then find ourselves in a place of rest and blessed assurance in the fires of adversity, testing and trials. It is here we overcome. It is here where we take on the title of OVERCOMER CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST because we know that we know that God is with us in every circumstance. He has an answer for all of it!
When our plans spring from within our own vain glorious expectations we step outside the realms of faith into carnal works of the flesh. Soon we find ourselves robbed of our potential to experience great joy in serving the One we love. Our joy should always be in our Salvation alone! Our obedience should always spring out of the knowledge that He loves us and chooses to express His Faithful Love and His power working within and through His sons. Immaturity keeps us disappointed, frustrated and fearful that the One who has called us may abandon us and prove unfaithful to His claims of loyalty and faithfulness to watch over His immovable and unshakeable promises, HIS WORD.
Experiencing the reality of our weakness apart from Christ should be the impetus of the desire to “grow up.” We must allow the Spirit of God teach us to trust Him and produce a revelation of His own expectations for us. The Lord uses circumstances of life to bring about His desired effect within the deepest places of our soul and spirit that redefine us, renew our minds, reform us and manifest His life within us so that we no longer have to lean on our own understanding.
Disappointments and frustrations are designed to produce a hunger and thirst for righteousness born out of the lack thereof. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Walking in the spirit realm at entry level is a process of falling down and getting back up again to maturity. It is a life long journey. We will always find ourselves entering into something new in Christ. Many times the new is another disappointment because the new is not what you expected and did not turn out the way you imagined things would turn out. He loves the new and the unexpected! Growing in the Lord is a lifetime of twists and turns, high’s and lows, victories and defeats that all serve to produce with us all the Mind of Christ that trust completely in the Father no matter the circumstance. He knows what He is doing and uses every mistake, wrong attitude and preconceived notions or expectation to mature us. Everyday is another “bornagain” opportunity! So exciting!
No one has arrived that I know of, although some are under the impression they have.
The Lord is not offended with our immaturity, nor is He surprised that you would contend with Him concerning His part in the “moment.” Consider that when the Lord spoke us into existence, He already knew what the times and the seasons would be for us just as He has for everyone that He foreknew. Besides where there is weakness and failure and obvious sin His grace much more abounds. He has stacked the deck in our favor so that we can get back up and move on to maturity when contentions between our flesh, body, immature spirit and His Spirit arise.
