It was little things that Nicodemus witnessed over a period of time, that got him thinking and rethinking everything he had ever heard or learned. The reason he was able to believe; the reason Jesus got through to Him, was because apparently, he didn’t have an issue with pride. He didn’t think that his knowledge base was the end all, or that he knew everything about everything. He was still open and seeking answers. It wasn’t that he wasn’t reading the word and believing it. That wasn’t it at all. He believed the word, yet something was missing.

It was the process that built his faith. It was the seemingly small incidents and little changes. God moved in the environment around him, strategically putting each piece of the puzzle in place at a preset, predestinated time, so that at each interval, his eyes would be opened just a little bit more, and he would see. This is why scripture says we have to walk with God daily, because if we give up and stop communicating with Him, the “process” stops. Our growth stops, and we start repeating errors; repeating past mistakes that we already kicked ourselves in the can for.

Luk 9:23    And he said to [them] all, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

That is a three step process.
Deny yourself-this is the tough one. In a self-centered, me first world, this is a fight.
Take up your cross daily-this one means submit. Sometimes submitting can be as burdensome as carrying that heavy wooden cross was, especially if you have issues with the person you have to submit to, or the situation has kicked you in the dirt. This one is a battle with your pride.
Follow Me-this one is about who you listen to. It’s about your source. This one is about hold on and don’t let go. You wanna talk about codependance? It’s encouraged here.

“If you die daily, death eventually will no longer have it’s sting.”

The above quote came from another pastor in my church. I thought the question he asked was very valid. If God sent you on a detour from the path you thought your life was on, would you follow Him? And furthermore, would you follow Him into darkness? Would you follow Him into a downpour?

“It’s about God’s purposes in his processes. He won’t subvert them to make things convenient and quick. You have to be willing to submit to his cleansing process.”

“It’s a piercing thing to recognize the gutters God will crawl through with you because He loves you.”

“Our wounds matter to God. He saves our tears because it matters to Him.”

“Admit and submit the thoughts I have issues with. It makes God happy when you bring your dirt to Him so He can clean you up.”

(A reference to Namaan) “Persevere in the provision of God. Keep dunking until it is resolved.”

Sy Rogers

It’s only by submitting to the process that you find whatever you thought you lost. Usually, what you find is far better than what you allegedly lost. The thing about gain and loss is…first of all, what you consider a loss is not always a loss. It’s a perspective issue. It could simply be time for that thing, or that phase of your life to move on. Sometimes its simply a growth thing.

Secondly, are you blocking your blessing because you are clinging (mentally) to something or someone you lost? We have to learn to let people go. It’s like that saying about the birds, at least, I always thought it was about birds.  “If you love something/someone set them free. If they come back they are yours, but if they don’t, they were never yours to begin with.” Something like that. In other words, don’t resist another’s need to check out.

The point is, nothing is permanent in this life, or on this earth, so what are you clinging to? The only definite is Christ. I have come to recognize that relationships are temporal at best. I’ve stopped allowing myself to be so dependent on a relationship that I’m devastated when it ends. The only relationship that I should be that dependent on is with Christ.

With everyone else, I see a time and a season, and I no longer expect that the season will never end. I try to view it as a blessing for a set period of time, but whenever they go, it’s time for a new blessing. This is because I’ve been moved into a different phase of growth, and some people can hold me back. I’m in a different cube within the cube, or, different atom on the string. (People who read me regularly will understand this reference, but for those who just got here, go back a few posts, and it will make sense. It’s a level issue. )

“Most people are living, on their way to dying. Christians are dying on their way to living.”

“This world can add years to your life. Jesus adds life to your years.”

How do you trust God? You don’t fight the process. You walk with Him daily and you give Him your tears and the issues that you cannot reckon, and allow Him the time to reconcile it for you. This will grow your faith. You will learn, over time, to trust Him in everything.

You know that saying, “When God closes a door, He opens a window?” Well, it doesn’t indicate that He would open up the same thing again. It doesn’t even indicate that the window that would get opened would be attached to the same house. Let me free you up a second. The door and the window could be in two totally different arenas of your life, and totally unrelated. He may have to shut down one, in order to open the other, so resistance is futile as the borg say.

I can tell you that because of something that happened recently; something totally unrelated to the two issues I had, but because of it, I now have faith again in those two issues. A door was opened to me, and this was another something that I had tried and had pretty much given up on due to frustration concerning my own efforts. Basically, I had been spinning my wheels in the mud, and had decided to let it go.