Jul 23
The Finale of the Dark Night of the Soul (III)
And he touched my mouth with the coal, and said:
“Behold, this has touched your lips;
Your iniquity is taken away,
And your sin purged.” Is. 6:7
THE COAL OF TRANSFORMATION
It is impossible for you to accomplish the subordination of your soul to your spirit, so you can end the Dark Night of the Soul, without God touching you in some way. Yet, here, at this point in your journey that is precisely what is required of you. You are being asked to do something impossible - at least impossible without His touch. Thus, this moment almost forces you to reach out in desperation to Him. That desperation is exactly what God longs to see. It is what allows the transition you have been going through to become the transformation into a new person in Christ.
AGENDAS PLAY A ROLE
Sadly, we all, including you, ignorantly, without a speck of insight, speak words that are filled with your own motives and agendas. You think in terms that serve your own purposes. You make decisions that are for your own good with little thought of the consequences those decisions might have on others. To complicate matters, in those times when God is intensely present, you think He is actually there to comfort you or to help you accomplish your own desires.
YOUR WILL - HIS WILL?
Yes, God is present to help you in your time of need, but He is far from being a God whose focus is on your comfort. One quick tour of Scripture should convince you that you are here for His purpose; He is not here for yours. You are to find His will; He is not to find yours. In other words, it is His Kingdom come and His will be done that you pray for - not yours.
To make matters even more disquieting, if you have any inkling of being called to some level of ministry, forget the idea of comfort. Comfort has little to do with the advancement of the Kingdom. Why? Because, here at the Altar of incense you learn to live your life for others and that can be very uncomfortable. However, in all actuality it really is the quickest way to weaken the soul.
BEYOND YOUR ABILITIES
The coal that touched the lips of Isaiah was and is an intervention of God beyond your own capabilities. It was the purity of God being revealed. The little you truly know of God has been revealed to you by God. If God does not reveal Himself, you will tend to construct your own definition of who He is and what He looks like. The Golden Calf in the wilderness is proof enough of that. The desperate in heart will always see God reveal Himself to them.
PURIFIED SPEECH
Isaiah was a priest, a servant of God, yet he could not accomplish what was needed to take himself further. He needed the outside of time touch of God to change him on the inside and it started with his lips and what he had been saying. Perhaps God was saying, Stop thinking and praying for you and start praying and thinking about others.
Here is the last step before going into the Veil and Door Posts of the Holy of Holies. Like it or not, before you enter here, you will be transformed. Don’t worry, you are already well on the way to that point. Soon, your daily life will become steeped in prayer. That prayer will shift from intrinsic to extrinsic focus. But that is another posting.
Blessings,
John Paul Jackson
14 Comments so far
Leave a comment
Loading ...
my life is coming apart at the seams
W O W !!! I noticed the change in the font (printing characters)…
God has brought a surprise—in the darkness He has cut open the chrysalis—when we were not looking.
Dare we venture out!?!?!
As the transformation in our lives is about to be manifested—I wonder if others will perceive that our type (persona) has taken on this new form…..
Am I ready?
Linda
I am not an avid reader by any means, but I love reading this blog. I believe the reason for this is because what you are writing is what I am walking through. It’s not just a good read - it’s my reality.
I have been reading through the Gospel of John and have been noticing that Jesus does an awful lot of pointing people to the Father. He also seems to stress the point that He is not on earth for His will, but rather the will of His Father. Now that bits and pieces of the 101 are sinking in, I now know that the will is part of the soul, and that Jesus is demonstrating that His spirit was ruling over His soul.
I want to be just like Jesus (might as well think big, right?)
Lord, today I give to you everything that is not of you in my life, past, present, and future. I give to you all preconceived notions of what I think I need and want. Let it become what you have for me. Assist me in building my house on solid rock instead of shifting sand, so that when your Fire of Divine Love purifies my house, the foundation is still standing and your Holy Presence emanates and pulsates within me!
Father,
I pray God encounters for each of your people, may your Kingdom infiltrate their hearts that they may be forever ruined by your love for them. Every revelation of who you are that the enemy has robbed your people of, may they receive it sevenfold- this is your justice.
In Jesus name,
Amen
Today I have been thinking and reflecting on Mary.
What made her find favor in God’s eyes? What set her apart from all the other women down through the ages?
What made this seemingly ordinary young woman–trust God enough to let go of herself and let God have full control of her destiny?
Over the years she kept and pondered many things (that the Lord must have spoken to her and showed to her in the night seasons)–and quietly was amazed to see unfolding before her eyes…
Many times I have felt the Holy Spirit’s “overshadowing”…and I don’t always know what God is wanting to birth through me……..
When we cross and step into the next room–will we have more understanding and clarity?
Have we actually been fulfilling the destiny that You, Daddy God have called us to—even when we were not even aware that you were in our midst orchestrating the steps we take!?!
Let it be to me–according to Your word!!!
Linda
John Paul writes:
You are being asked to do something impossible - at least impossible without His touch. Thus, this moment almost forces you to reach out in desperation to Him. That desperation is exactly what God longs to see. It is what allows the transition you have been going through to become the transformation into a new person in Christ.
I write:
1 week ago today, when I was hot, overworked and tired, I decided to give in to it all and drop everything to enter into a much needed rest, so I thought. As I was going to sleep, the Father tapped me on the shoulder and before I knew it, I was sitting at a table with a business man around 33 years of age. I had the feeling that I met him somewhere before. His likeness was very familiar, yet I have never met the likes of this man in my natural life. Just as I was thinking who he was, he stared right into my eyes and said the following words to me:
“I have given you the rights to My Life and the release to cry out I have given you the rights to My Life and the release to carry it out, I have given you the rights to My Life and the will to carry it out, I have given you the rights to My Life and the freedom to carry it out, I have given you the rights to My Life and the strength to carry it out, For I died & rose that you might have My Life and have more abundantly”.
Shortly thereafter, I started to wake up from this short dream vision, with the words echoing in my spirit. And then I thought, who was this man, and shortly thereafter, the Lord impressed upon my spirit it was Him, coming to me in the form of today’s businessman. I believe that in this situation as I was tired but still in a state of desperation for the things of the Spirit, the Lord somehow knew this and in his love for me, when I had nothing left, He pursued me to tell me what He gave to me and every believer on the face of this earth.
Happy Birthday John Paul, may you be blessed with many more!
Shirley C.
I have been considering our understanding of God and how we reach an impasse in our ability to learn. We can only read and study so much before all we have is memorized information. You can memorize from a book all the positions of ballet but not be able to feel what they are like or perform them. I think there is some parallel with our knowledge of God.
After we memorize His characteristics we hit a wall. We need him to help us ‘dance’ with Him and experience His movement. I was thinking of how I have memorized His redemptive names but would love to feel them and move with them and see them. There is a big difference between someone who has read a book about ballet and a professional ballerina. Only an experienced instructor can raise up a professional ballerina. Oh that He might give me dancing lessons in His nature and attributes!
John Paul,
The word “combustion” came to me as I was praying for your MN ministry trip this week. As you minister and teach– may the Holy Spirit in you be the catalyst that sets off the fire of God.
May true spiritual light “ignite” in the hearts and minds of these Lutheran people. When they leave the conference, may they carry the sparks and fuel to scatter and flame in the people they come in contact with…
Keeping you in my prayers,
Linda
I have been going through a transition for several months now. Transition can be a very difficult time and I usually withdraw when I am going through this. But,if this leads me to transformation, then it will all be worth it. The fullness of the fruit of the Spirit is what I need. I believe that the fruit of the Spirit is more important that gifting. So, I am trusting God to lead me into the new, leaving the old behind. He makes all things new.
Blessings
When it all comes down to it, its all free, we have been bought and paid for by His Blood and all we have to do is tell others how to have access to it. The problem is who is doing it, and how are they saying it, because many are not getting it, because they are not buying it, because the price of too many programs, tapes, C.D’s are way to expensive, and many souls are bankrupt and what is the “IT” that I am talking about you may ask, “The Good News of Jesus, which is the Message of the Gospel. We need to stay focused folks.
Shirley C.
Bill Hybels Interview with Bono on the Church and where it should go.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grBByc7t3Fs
Funny, my tounge has been tickling for the last few days and I thought it was a coal on my tounge and lips…Yep going thought the fire of purification. It started when I started again reading your blog.
john paul,
i had fallen asleep and in my dream, some neighbors and i were in prayer, I saw myself falling backward or slain in the spirit, i saw a vision of two magestic hands, and the hands only, catch me and laid me down so very gently, , i knew it was The Hands of my Father. this was so real. could u explain this vision to me?