About the Golden Perspective Series:
GPS is a monthly post will feature a different woman, specifically highlighting their unique fashion choices and written voices. I can't wait to share these amazing, everyday ladies with you! Each of them has an incredible perspective to share, just as each of you do.
About the Author:
This month we're hearing from the ever-so-wise Rebekah Sullivan. Bekah is an incredibly gifted conversationalist, and is working towards becoming a spiritual counselor. She also has the some of the most insight into the church that I've ever seen - and you're going to get a glimpse of that today! Enjoy this reorienting perspective of who you are to Christ.
From Rebekah:
I keep hearing over and over the words the Father spoke to me a few weeks ago: "The time of My children is coming to an end, and the time of My Sons is beginning." He says it patiently, not out of frustration or restlessness, but out of sheer excitement and delight. I believe the Church has wrestled so long with sin, shame, discouragement, and unbelief. But that's not what Believers were created for. That's not what Jesus died for.
I used to think that my life was a constant cycle of shame, in which I would remember the goodness of the Lord and feel happy and free, and then I would slip back into sin, which always resulted in guilt and condemnation, so I would ask for forgiveness from God and He would reluctantly give it, but each time He did it was with more disappointment. I thought He was constantly frustrated at me for how easily I gave in to sin, telling me that I should know better, telling me He expects, even deserves better from me. But this is not the Father's heart.
A few weeks ago, I was asking the Lord what He's saying about this issue in the Church. He gave me a really clear picture of us, the Bride of Christ, going through those exact same cycles of sin, round and round, like a rat on a wheel. All of a sudden, I saw the Father crash through the cycle, piercing through the shame. He came up from under us, grabbed us by the arms, and yanked us up out of the cycle and into the clouds where He dwells. He said, "it's time to come up higher!" He was violent but loving, fierce but intentional.
He explained to me that for a long time, we have been operating out of immaturity and naivety, like little children. During this time, He has been incredibly patient and joyful, because He LOVES His little kids. Any parent delights in the immaturity and silliness of their child, even when they are unruly, fearful, and insecure. But He is declaring a shift now, He is saying that we are growing from little children into Sons and Daughters, Kings and Priests, Faithful Ones, co-heirs with Jesus Christ.
I believe the Father is calling out a generation of people who know what it means to be the true Sons of God, who know what their inheritance is. I believe a time is coming where His people will actually start to believe Him when He says, "There is now NO condemnation for you. I have not given you a spirit of fear, but of adoption into son-ship. I now give you permission to exercise your authority in Christ."
We are being called to greater holiness, because being set apart is not God's punishment on us, it's a measure of the value that He places on our lives. I believe we will actually begin to break out of cycles of sin and patterns of destruction, not because we are perfect, but because we will come to know and understand the character and nature of our God, and how we have received that very nature as well. And out of this heart posture we will be able to actually operate on earth as we would in heaven, just as Jesus prayed. We will be able to bring Kingdom culture into every aspect of our lives with joy, humility, steadfastness, and immense faith.
I pray that as you read this, you receive a greater measure of Faith for what God is doing and for who He has created you to be in Him. I pray that you gain an understanding of your inheritance, your identity, and your role in bringing Heaven to earth. You are called to glory, holiness, and greatness, and you were born for such a time as this!
Love, Rebekah
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