Asking "Why"?

Since Sunday I have been pondering "why". Why do we not get it? Why do we sit in church, listen to the sermon and it make little impact on the way we see, hear and interact with God.

This morning this "why" is laying heavy on my heart. I feel the grief of the Holy Spirit over the lack of intimacy with His people. This "why" has been building in me and this morning several things have made it more intense.

I got an email from a friend, who seems to have come to feel the same "why". She wrote, "God certainly blessed you with a timely vision. Perhaps we need to pray for churches and leadership to teach about the gifts of the Holy Spirit. If they would bind the spirit of fear and let God out of the box, we would see more signs and wonders. God wants to bless our socks off--so we need to stop wondering how He does it or who he uses. It's a matter of trust and yielding to the Holy Spirit."


She speaks of my vision Sunday morning and the pastor's interpretation. This event Sunday has certainly added to my "why". I sat there and watched as the Spirit of God fell on the church in His awesome glory. But, also, watched as many did not recognize the Spirit of God. They had no idea that God was visiting that place. Are they not expecting, are they void of relationship with the Father, are they blind?

I have seen many teachings on the gifts of the Spirit, but little movement. I agree with my friend, that it needs to be done more, but, even then something in the teaching is missing. Connection is missing. There in lies the problem, how to teach people to connect.

The Analyst, wrote today, on his blog, "Which Jesus will you Follow". His post, again, brought back to me, the grief the Holy Spirit is feeling over the lack of intimacy with His people. The Analyst asks, do you follow the safe Jesus or do the follow the Jesus that brings you to your knees. His post, brought to my mind, the fact that some people do not know there is a difference. For many, God is confined to the Bible, a set of rules and regulations and a piece of life, but not the totality of life.

Making that choice of "which Jesus to follow" should be looked at by everyone. But, following the Jesus that would cause you to fall to your knees would bring sacrifice. One would have to give up control and walk in obedience. For myself, I know that I truly have no control, so giving it up is a no brainer.

As my friend wrote in her email, "fear". Fear, fear, fear.

Too many of us have chosen to follow the safe Jesus because of our fears. Fear of looking foolish and fear of what God may ask of us. This fear causes us to miss what God has for us and in that, to miss the glory of God. The intimacy of God. The movement of God. The healing of God. The mysteries of God. GOD Himself.

So, I pray against a spirit of fear and a spirit of pride that lays so heavily on this country. It robs us of our God. These spirits have become so familiar to us that it would take a lot of discomfort to walk away from them. But, follow Jesus is not always comfortable. But, it is always peaceful.