EPISODE 9 Living in the Waterfall – Part 4 Rest and Peace
The Waterfall is a place of REST and PEACE and we can see evidence of our progress in living out these, by comparing our behaviour with our role model, Jesus.
To walk as Jesus walked we must do so from a place of REST
Jesus is our supreme example of how to live in the Waterfall.
He never strived or rushed. He rested in the Father.
This speaks of Him having a quiet centre
where absolute trust and certainty filled His being.
He stayed close to His Father:
listening, “speaking the words the Father gave Him to say”;
obeying, “doing the things the Father gave Him to do” and
working when the Holy Spirit was upon Him.
He then achieved all that His Father set before Him.
Jesus rested secure in His Father.
There was no pressure in terms of time and what was needing to be done.
Filling days with ministry to accomplish much, was not necessary.
Jesus was travelling at the Father’s pace and there was time
for all those things that the Father deemed necessary.
The Holy Spirit was the stage manager and
Jesus flowed with Him, when the anointing came upon Him.
REST is also about time set aside to replenish and renew. The ‘one in 7’ is a great yardstick.
One hour in 7: one day in 7: 1 week in 7. One year in 7.
A working day is constructed this way,
God ordained a day of rest in a week and
the school year is constructed around terms and half-terms.
In agriculture fields have one year in seven lying fallow.
Without times of rest, humans burn out and become stunted.
BUT How often do we see it as an indulgence to take time for ourselves to process and have space for silence and reflection.
JESUS , however, withdrew over forty times in the Gospels .
He withdrew from the world to be refreshed and replenished
before continuing His mission.
Sometimes He had time alone with His Father,
sometimes special times with His friends debriefing,
processing events or downtime relaxing.
To walk as Jesus walked we need to RESPOND NOT REACT
Whether we are coming from a place of rest or driveness
becomes obvious when we meet with unforeseen circumstances,
during our day. How do we cope? .
Jesus resting in HIS FATHER always
RESPONDED to a situation rather than REACTING to it.
RESTING in the Father He was in the present moment
so when something unexpected occurred. He turned and considered
His response. For example, on the way to Jairus’ seemingly fatally-ill daughter
He had time to create a safe and timeless bubble, for the woman
with the issue of blood, to be heard and healed.
He was letting the Father deal with the strategic picture
as He flowed with the Holy Spirit in the moment.
Automatic reactions of the fight, flight or freeze variety
come from perceived threats or from
difficult experiences which are unhealed and lead us to driven reactions
“I must….. “ “I’ve got to….
In neither case is there consideration and choice
in how to approach the situation, with all it nuances.
Jesus took time. He never reacted thoughtlessly but considered his choices, hence there was time for the Father to give Him
some stunningly creative responses.
If you are serious in being on the journey with God
you quickly learn you are not going to be travelling
in straight lines from point to point.
By saying to God when you step into the Waterfall I will follow your leading,
God takes you at your word.
I did not realise what I had prayed when I said to God.
“ Get me where you want me as soon as possible.”
There began a rollercoaster of a ride for 4 years.
Often I was thinking I wouldn’t have done it this way
but as I look back I can see God’s wisdom shining through.
I needed that journey and those looping pathways
to pick up the healing and equipping that are part of my ministry now.
When we have given such permission, for God
to use us as He wills in His plans
He can make use of us on many levels for Kingdom purposes.
Sometimes He may use us as grit to help another become a pearl.
IF YOU Ask “What are you doing here Lord?” He will share His thinking with you.
In every circumstance there are things for us to learn
often we miss them because we are rushing ahead
to the next thing on our agenda.
God gave me a picture of travelling with Him on horseback .
I was in front of Him and He held the reins and
my job was to sit back and be content to let Him be in charge
to choose the path for the journey but also to be enquiring,
seeking His face “What’s going on here?” “What are you showing me?”
“What do I need to see?”
To partner with God as He wants, is to be engaged with His purposes , it is part of the journey towards having “the mind of Christ.”
TO WALK AS JESUS WALKED we need to walk OUT OF A PLACE OF PEACE
Jesus said in John 14:27
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”
The Waterfall, the place of abiding, is where Jesus lived with the Father as He walked the earth. Out of a quiet peacefulness centred on the certainties of trust in His Father, Jesus responded to the circumstances he encountered, being whole he had no need to be defensive or to manipulate others to meet His needs.
As we learn to trust God for every area of life and
allow Him to be God in our lives,
we enter the peace that the world cannot give,
that Jesus modelled.
It is not a place of striving but a place of resting,
in a deep loving relationship with the One
who can do all things. We have come home.
Here is security, absolute love and protection.
It changes life and turns upside down what has gone before in our lives.
Life is now to be lived from God’s perspective not our own, for we have
work to do for the Kingdom. In tough times, our job is to find the place of peace,
When a seeming disaster strikes,
it is holding God to His Word that He will
bring all things together for good.
It is living this out. “Lord what are you doing here?
I have my eyes on you believing for the good.”
It is holding and repeating the promises of God,
when butterflies invade the tummy!
It is standing on all you have seen in the past,
the faith you have banked in who God is, until His peace breaks through.
This is a hard lesson to learn
in the midst of disquiet but Peace will eventually come.
Jesus says, “Seek peace and pursue it.”
It is finding this quiet centre to live out of as Jesus did,
which will bring effectiveness for the Kingdom and
maturity for the disciple.
HOW DO YOU COPE WHEN LIFE OVERWHELMS YOU?
It really helps to have plan in place ready
SO YOU KNOW the steps to take to stay rooted in Jesus
when life is overwhelming.
This is my plan and I use it a lot.
Something erupts to disturb my peace.
Something happens to one of my grandchildren
Instead of the headless chicken I used to imitate now I make a cup of tea.
I sit and breathe deeply. I turn my eyes upon Jesus.
I reflect on who He is and how we have travelled together so far.
I often say “Lord I can’t do this I need your help.”
I may feel sick but I hold to the promises of Jesus,
The faithulness the Father has shown me in the past,
the Knowing, that the Holy Spirit has imparted in past challenges.
I hang onto the memorials and cairns that we have raised
as we have journeyed together.
The evidence of God in my life is here, stored for such a time as this.
Jesus says “You are mine. I will never leave you or forsake you.” Good enough.
Then I choose to trust God for the matter in hand. This is the rock I stand on.
Then do what comes into your head and your heart. Trust and obey or God may say “Wait”and leave it to Him . Let God be God.
Keep repeating His promises and His word. God cannot go back on them. Let them calm your feelings as you choose trust.
Keep letting go of the problem into the hands of Jesus.
KEEP GOING UNTIL YOU RECEIVE HIS PEACE.
It will come but we need to learn to wrestle for it. Especially at 4 in the morning. Our peace is in who God is and His unchanging character and Word.
Stand and peace will come.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.“ Romans 8 :28 Pray God’s word back to Him. You said this Lord. I am believing it and holding you to this promise.
PRACTICE BEING IN THIS PLACE OF PEACE. THEN When the emergency happens the car crash ,the medical emergency you will look to God and say “what ? “and you will do what comes into your mind and you will see God work in the situation through you.
CHALLENGE: work on keeping your sense of peace. IT takes effort and activity. ENGAGE.Visualise resting in the Father.
Live in the present moment. Let Him have the future.
Be available now to respond to what He sets before you.
If your peace is disturbed stand on all you know of the truth of God.
This needed because as Teresa of Avila put it :-
"Christ has no body now, but yours. No hands, no feet on earth, but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ looks compassion into the world. Yours are the feet with which Christ walks to do good. Yours are the hands with which Christ blesses the world."
REMEMBER AS WE GO Onward the Holy Spirit will lead you on your own personal journey into the three areas for growth in the Waterfall :-
• THE WAY to transformation – the healing of our hearts, the renewing of our minds and the restoration of our broken image.
• THE TRUTH of who GOD is – knowing the nature, the Word and the mind of God, the functions of the Trinity and our identity in Him, leading us to maturity on the pathway to holiness.
• THE LIFE – living in the authority of Jesus as Kingdom ambassadors, in the gifting and with the call of God on our lives, flowing in the Holy Spirit to fulfil the purposes of God.
Next time we are going to start looking at our inner journeys to set us on THE WAY to transformation
How we have been damaged in the fallen world and how to co-operate with the Holy Spirit in His ministry to transform us.
