The Journey

I went on a journey today. With Jesus leading me, I went through eons of darkness to arrive at a dark, dark place where a mist hung over waters. There he showed me that I was there! A thought in the mind of God yet without form. The Spirit hovered over me, brooding, waiting, protecting.

Then at a right time, I began to move forward. As I did, Jesus spoke. He told me how He had prepared a time that was just right for me. He hated how awful the world was and how it would seem to eat me alive at time with its evil and sadness. I was made in such a way to feel this evil keenly and to feel this sadness deeply and He grieved for the pain I would have to suffer.

But as we neared my destination, He paused and wrapped a warm coat around me telling me it would keep me safe. To wear it and know His arms wrapped me and held me tightly to Him when the flesh world I would soon be thrust into, felt overwhelming. I didn't want to leave Him! But knew my time had come to be in His Kingdom and work whatever good there was for me to work.

We talked a bit longer, but as we did I saw Him get further and further from me. I reached frantically for Him and a tendril of light came whisping toward me, circled me, and flowed into me. I was overwhelmed with a feeling of great joy, and I praised the God on high, for my time of nothingness was over! and my time of purpose had come! The Lord was with me. The Kingdom inside me. His warriors around me. And I entered the light of the world wrapped in His coat of righteousness to face the life He had planned for me from the beginning of the world.

The Fifth Dimension

There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition, and it lies between the pit of man's fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination. It is an area which we call The Twilight Zone.
—Rod Serling

I grew up watching the Twilight Zone. It terrified me. But I loved it anyway.

I remember two episodes clearly.

The first was about a woman whose world was being drawn toward the sun. As the world became hotter and hotter, trees would burst into flames and her clothes would become scantier (it was the 1960's after all). Just when I thought the world would burn up, she awakes only to find out that she had been very sick with a fever, and her real world was actually falling away from the sun and turning into ice.

The second was about a woman who enters a store and is abducted by mannequins. They tell her she is one of them and she must come back. In the end she realizes she actually IS a mannequin and joins them in a room filled with plastic people like her.

At the time, I always loved trying to figure out the mystery behind the story. Now I realize there was a message to them...one of 'what is reality' and the other 'finding your true self'.

Sarah Young, in her devotional book, Jesus Calling, describes the true fifth dimension: 'one of openness to (God's) Presence. This dimension transcends the others, giving you glimpses of heaven while you still reside on earth'. She goes on to describe how God used to be able to walk with Adam and Eve in the garden and how He desires to walk with us in the gardens of our hearts where he now resides.

That idea brought forth scripture after scripture that describes a garden and God's desire for us to live there with him. Let me put together a Twilight Zone that I found.

My life has its struggles. Chaos rules. Confusion abounds. Finding the strength to face another day is so difficult...I want to stay in bed with the covers over my head. There's a great storm surrounding me with my head under the covers. I hear thunder! Crashing! Crying! Then silence.

I pull the covers away and find I am actually on a soft pallet in a lush green garden. Not too far away there is a table filled with fruit of all kinds and the smells of purity and peace are everywhere. The air is calm. Birds are singing. Then the most handsome man I have ever seen appears, takes me hand, leads me to the table and offers me a beautiful fruit he calls Life. "I have overcome your world of Chaos," he says. "You have tasted the other fruit on the table: Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, and self control. Now is the time for you to try the fruit of the tree of Life."

As I taste the fruit He gives me, my eyes are opened to even greater awareness. Joy is overwhelming. I can't take my eyes off of His. They are filled with love just for me. I dance! I sing! I tell Him how wonderful He is and how my life will never be the same after awakening in His garden! He surrounds me with His arms and tells me He will never, ever, leave me alone. He will always be waiting for me in a secret place. A secret place is called Contentment. In the Contented garden, He will whisper loving words of peace that goes beyond anything I could ever see with my eyes or know with my mind. He explains how His hands will guide my hands to do unimaginable good for others and how He has planned my day before I ever awake. All I have to do is follow His quiet voice as He walks with me through whatever the day holds and His power will go ahead of me to show His glory in my life.

As I look down, I see I still have the fruit of Life in my hand. I thought I had eaten all of it but it was still whole. He explains that I will always have Life in my hands and can taste of it anytime I want. Further more, I can give this fruit to anyone else I want to so that they could taste of His garden and walk with Him. I thought of what others would think of me if I offered them this strange fruit. Would they laugh at me? and the garden started to fade. He reached for me but the covers were over my head again and I was hiding in my bed.

Crying, I thought of what a wonderful dream it had been. I wanted to go back so desperately! I put my hands to my eyes to wipe away the tears and realized there was something in them. A fruit. A strange, beautiful fruit. And with joy I took a big bite and listened..."I love you!"...and I followed the voice as He led me to share Life. His Life. In His secret garden He put in my heart.

There IS a fifth dimension.

The Wind

Listening to the wind blow. I think I will choose to listen and meditate on the Spirit instead of the allergens.


“Only God's Spirit gives new life. The Spirit is like the wind that blows wherever it wants to. You can hear the wind, but you don't know where it comes from or where it is going.” John 3:8

Love

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us.
That's why we must give our lives for each other.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love.
Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.



John 3:16 (NLT)
1 John 3:16 (CEV)
1 John 4:16 (NIV)

Refuge

My child, don’t lose sight of common sense and discernment.
Hang on to them, for they will refresh your soul.
They are like jewels on a necklace.
They keep you safe on your way, and your feet will not stumble.
You can go to bed without fear; you will lie down and sleep soundly.
You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes
upon the wicked, for the Lord is your security.
He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap.

Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

Praise the Lord!
For he has heard my cry for mercy.
The Lord is my strength and shield.
I trust him with all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.
I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.

The Lord gives his people strength.


Proverbs 3:21-26 (New Living Translation)
Psalm 34:8 (New Living Translation)
2 Corinthians 10:4-5 (New International Version, ©2011)
Colossians 3:15 (New Living Translation)
Psalm 28:6-8 (New Living Translation)

Healing

You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my fortress.

He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
Yet it was our sicknesses he carried;
it was our diseases that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!

When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”

Praise the Lord!
How good to sing praises to our God! How delightful and how fitting!
He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.
Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom.
Instead, fear the Lord and turn away from evil.
Then you will have healing for your body
and strength for your bones.

“Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”

Psalm 59:9 (NLT)
Isaiah 53:3-4 (NLT)
John 5:6,8 (NLT)
Psalm 147:1,3 (NLT)
Proverbs 3:5-8 (NLT)
John 5:8 (NLT)

Distressed

The angel of the Lord appeared … and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!”

“Sir,” …“if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?

Then the Lord …said, “Go with the strength you have…”

“But Lord,…how can I…?...I am the least in my entire family!”

The Lord said …, “I will be with you…”

Seek His will in all you do,
and He will show you which path to take.

Companions, as we are in this work with you, we beg you, please don't squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us.

God reminds us,
I heard your call in the nick of time;
The day you needed me, I was there to help.

The smallness you feel comes from within you.
Your lives aren't small, but you're living them in a small way.
I'm speaking as plainly as I can and with great affection.
Open up your lives. Live openly and expansively!

And now, isn't it wonderful all the ways in which this distress has goaded you closer to God?
You're more alive, more concerned, more sensitive, more reverent, more human, more passionate, more responsible.

He stands up for those who are beaten down.
He gives food to hungry people.
The Lord sets prisoners free.
The Lord gives sight to those who are blind.
The Lord lifts up those who feel helpless.
The Lord loves those who do what is right.
The Lord watches over the outsiders who live in our land.
He takes good care of children whose fathers have died.
He also takes good care of widows.
But he causes evil people to fail
in everything they do.
The Lord rules forever.
The God of Zion will rule for all time to come.

Praise the Lord!



Judges 6:11-16 (NLT)
Proverbs 3:6 (NLT)
2 Corinthians 6:1, 13 (MSG)
2 Corinthians 7:11 (MSG)
Psalm 146:7-10 (NIRV)

Lord

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
do not depend on your own understanding.


(Lord) Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you.
Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you.

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name.

O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.
You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.

So we say with confidence,

“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?”

Proverbs 3:5 (NLT)
Psalm 143:8 (NLT)
Psalm 23:1-3 (NLT)
Psalm 139:1-4 (NLT)
Hebrews 13:6 (NIV)