God displays His power in a refined and channeled way despite His boundless capacity for raw power.
There was a time when the concept of manned flight involved a lot of raw power or brute force (and ignorance). Flapping of feathered limbs, in the way of birds, was one approach. Others jumped off bridges and cliffs or used exertion to launch themselves into the air. Even the pre-flight era muscled along in brute force and ignorance, believing that a wing should be designed to ride the wind and batter its way into supremacy over the air. Other attempts focused on making lighter-than air vehicles, which was inherently frustrated by the inclusion of the “man” component of “manned flight”.
Then the Wrights realized that the secret to flight lay in harnessing the wind and using its physical properties to carry the aircraft aloft. The secret lay in the shape of the wing, which exploited the laws of aerodynamics.
Sailors had similar joys in harnessing the power of the wind. The concept of catching the wind soon gave way to the better idea of riding the wind, which enabled sail boats to actually face the wind and be drawn forward by the venturi effect of aerodynamics. The alternative was to rely solely on following winds as they pushed you around the earth, a long way to go if you needed to go a bit upwind for a loaf of bread.
The power of God is also depicted in scripture as a wind, for good reason. It is accessible to all, free and abundant, but its power can only be harnessed by applying appropriate principles of spiritual dynamics.
We need to shape our lives to catch His breath and live in His power.
A sailor tacks to get the optimal angle of attack into the wind, but opens the sail when sailing with the wind. When sailing upwind, the sail is trimmed to its optimal shape, enabling the wind to draw the boat through the water.
Two things are needed for sailing upwind: tack and sail trim.
Spiritual tacking implies a need to face God, spend time with Him and humbly seek His ways. It’s about aligning our lives to His Word and life. Clearly if we just wait for down winds, we will slowly drift away from the source. To head back to God, we need a different approach. His Word is powerful and life giving, but if we don’t expose ourselves to it or skillfully navigate our lives into the wind, the power of His Word will be lost to us.
Of course we also need to shape our lives, through application of His truth. It is not enough to just face God and enjoy His wind in our faces. We must apply ourselves to His truth if we ever hope to tap into the power of the life that blows through our lives. We can go to church and busy ourselves with many things, yet never really progress as we wallow around in dead water. Or we can deliberately respond to His truth to stop that noisy flapping in the wind.
There is an unsustainable, tiring and inefficient way to walk with God, but there is also a way to tap into His rhythm, know His heart and feel His heartbeat.
The vision in Ezekiel 47, of a river flowing from the temple of God, speaks of a tide that we can immerse ourselves in. We may start off at ankle- or knee-depth or even stay on the banks to watch the kingdom flow past us, but the best place to be, is in mid-river where the current flows strongest. The river that Ezekiel saw eventually flowed out into the fullness of the Promised Land and that is where we will end up if we go with its flow: we will experience its power, realize its boundaries and see His promises fulfilled.
There is no doubt that the wind or tide of God’s Spirit describes vast power, but it is not the raw power that we normally associate with power in everyday life. It is not explosive or kinetic or pneumatic or any other kind of power. It is spiritual power, capable of transforming ordinary lives into history makers. It challenges the gates of hell and raises us from the uttermost to the uttermost to equip us for eternal life. It is a healing, restorative and quickening power.
It may be subtle and often almost imperceptible, but no one who has trusted in His truth has ever been put to shame, for His truth will always win the day and prevail against the darkness. In the immortal words of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, “His Truth is marching on”.
(c) Peter Eleazar at www.bethelstone.com
There was a time when the concept of manned flight involved a lot of raw power or brute force (and ignorance). Flapping of feathered limbs, in the way of birds, was one approach. Others jumped off bridges and cliffs or used exertion to launch themselves into the air. Even the pre-flight era muscled along in brute force and ignorance, believing that a wing should be designed to ride the wind and batter its way into supremacy over the air. Other attempts focused on making lighter-than air vehicles, which was inherently frustrated by the inclusion of the “man” component of “manned flight”.
Then the Wrights realized that the secret to flight lay in harnessing the wind and using its physical properties to carry the aircraft aloft. The secret lay in the shape of the wing, which exploited the laws of aerodynamics.
Sailors had similar joys in harnessing the power of the wind. The concept of catching the wind soon gave way to the better idea of riding the wind, which enabled sail boats to actually face the wind and be drawn forward by the venturi effect of aerodynamics. The alternative was to rely solely on following winds as they pushed you around the earth, a long way to go if you needed to go a bit upwind for a loaf of bread.
The power of God is also depicted in scripture as a wind, for good reason. It is accessible to all, free and abundant, but its power can only be harnessed by applying appropriate principles of spiritual dynamics.
We need to shape our lives to catch His breath and live in His power.
A sailor tacks to get the optimal angle of attack into the wind, but opens the sail when sailing with the wind. When sailing upwind, the sail is trimmed to its optimal shape, enabling the wind to draw the boat through the water.
Two things are needed for sailing upwind: tack and sail trim.
Spiritual tacking implies a need to face God, spend time with Him and humbly seek His ways. It’s about aligning our lives to His Word and life. Clearly if we just wait for down winds, we will slowly drift away from the source. To head back to God, we need a different approach. His Word is powerful and life giving, but if we don’t expose ourselves to it or skillfully navigate our lives into the wind, the power of His Word will be lost to us.
Of course we also need to shape our lives, through application of His truth. It is not enough to just face God and enjoy His wind in our faces. We must apply ourselves to His truth if we ever hope to tap into the power of the life that blows through our lives. We can go to church and busy ourselves with many things, yet never really progress as we wallow around in dead water. Or we can deliberately respond to His truth to stop that noisy flapping in the wind.
There is an unsustainable, tiring and inefficient way to walk with God, but there is also a way to tap into His rhythm, know His heart and feel His heartbeat.
The vision in Ezekiel 47, of a river flowing from the temple of God, speaks of a tide that we can immerse ourselves in. We may start off at ankle- or knee-depth or even stay on the banks to watch the kingdom flow past us, but the best place to be, is in mid-river where the current flows strongest. The river that Ezekiel saw eventually flowed out into the fullness of the Promised Land and that is where we will end up if we go with its flow: we will experience its power, realize its boundaries and see His promises fulfilled.
There is no doubt that the wind or tide of God’s Spirit describes vast power, but it is not the raw power that we normally associate with power in everyday life. It is not explosive or kinetic or pneumatic or any other kind of power. It is spiritual power, capable of transforming ordinary lives into history makers. It challenges the gates of hell and raises us from the uttermost to the uttermost to equip us for eternal life. It is a healing, restorative and quickening power.
It may be subtle and often almost imperceptible, but no one who has trusted in His truth has ever been put to shame, for His truth will always win the day and prevail against the darkness. In the immortal words of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, “His Truth is marching on”.
(c) Peter Eleazar at www.bethelstone.com
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