Psalm 32: 8 (NIV) – “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with My loving eye on you."
In the course of pursuing my kingdom assignment, the Lord has schooled me, teaching me how to walk in this new and unfamiliar direction. He has been aligning my heart with His and pressing me to release fresh oil for my next level and depth with Him. I can summarize the areas He has covered in the curriculum as follows:
1. Identity management: The Lord has affirmed me.
When the Lord called Jeremiah as a prophet to the nations, he was fearful of men and lacking in confidence because he was too young. The Lord reassured Jeremiah that He would put His words in his mouth, be with and protect him (Jeremiah 1:7-8).
Like Jeremiah, I was fearful at first when the Lord handed me my new job description. I was scared and a bit flustered because it seemed too grand for my mind to comprehend. I didn’t know where to start. I felt inadequate and not entirely qualified.
Two years and one month later, I’m a completely different person. I’ve learned that as a conduit, I’m partnering with God to do His will on earth as in Heaven.
2. The Law of Surrender
If I could get $1,000 for the number of times the Lord has told me, “Trust Me,” by now, I’d have stacked up loads of cash! Initially, I thought the Lord’s repeated emphasis on me trusting Him meant that I might be lacking in the faith department, but quite the contrary.
I’ve come to understand that it was an invitation to surrender things & spaces fully I valued: my ways, thoughts, deadlines, timelines, and methods in favor of His. The Lord wanted me to study and engage His Kingdom’s patterns/principles, and protocols so that I could see the guaranteed result of a glory-filled life.
Relinquishing control was a bit of a struggle, especially when embracing a scanty plan and process. Nonetheless, I had to be obedient even if I felt hurt and confused.
When God subjected me to the process of total surrender, He was giving me a practical lesson complete with an application of the 1st rule of the kingdom – ‘Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness ….’ (Matthew 6:33); so that I could access and enjoy the benefits of being a kingdom citizen.
3. Fasting 101
I was very well-versed in prayer before saying yes to my Kingdom assignment. I’d never really tried to fast, nor was I serious about it. Since then, the Lord has trained and constantly worked my fasting muscle to build my capacity.
He’s using fasting to consecrate my ear and increase my discernment of His voice and instructions. I’ve learned how to combine fasting with prayer as an effective weapon of spiritual warfare (Mathew 17:21).
As a result of fasting, I’ve seen the reward of having my petitions and prayers answered expeditiously (Matthew 6: 17-18).
4. Kingdom Assistance
Part of my schooling took part during a wilderness season in my life.
Having been helped by God, kingdom assistance is not a myth. The Lord has supernaturally provided for me through divine connections and encouraged me through ministering angels.
He has taught, counseled, and comforted me through the Holy Spirit. I’ve always known about the Holy Spirit, but during this season, I have a newfound appreciation for John 14:15-18:
15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[c] in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you”.
The Holy Spirit helped me pray when I couldn’t properly articulate myself because I felt overwhelmed by warfare from the devil. The Holy Spirit counseled and encouraged me to keep walking the narrow path and trust God’s wisdom when the pressing became uncomfortable.
The Holy Spirit gave me revelation of the scriptures, which became a lamp unto my feet and my path (John 14: 26) when fear of the unknown tried to creep up and destabilize me.
Knowing that my help comes from above, I’m resolute in partnering with God to fulfill my assignment- all for His glory.
When class is in session, and God the instructor is taking you through the curriculum, will you always understand or like His teaching methods? No.
Will there be moments you feel like dropping out or abandoning the course altogether? Yes.
Is it necessary that you go through the curriculum? Absolutely, because through it, the Lord is building and increasing your capacity for fresh revelation and glory to help you be effective in your next.
Embrace the process wholeheartedly. It will eventually make sense.
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