True Joy--One Cubit Away!

by Michelle Amirault

Many of us have heard the expression that goes something like: "The farthest distance from the head is the eighteen inches to the heart." Often it is the used to tell a person that having God, or a concept of God, in your head is one thing, but that He must be in your heart to give you His Life! I've heard this used to explain to a person who when asked if they know God responds, 'I go to church.' (This usually tells us they do not have a living relationship with God.) The purpose of the explanation is to help them understand the need to get born of His Holy Spirit or what is called 'born again'. It is a real happening and one is never the same after being so awakened by God. John 3:3-7 says, "In reply Jesus declared, 'I tell you the truth, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.' 'How can a man be born when he is old?' Nicodemus asked. 'Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!' Jesus answered, 'I tell you the truth, unless a man is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.'"

There is a great truth here that I want to try to express to those that have already had their Spirits awakened by the Holy Spirit. But first I know by the Holy Spirit within me, that there are several readers of our material that have not yet been really Spiritually quickened. Please do not be offended, but instead take this private time to ask God if He is only in your head or have you been born again by His true Seed? Even knowing Jesus as Savior of all mankind can be just a doctrine in your head! When you know Him by the Holy Spirit that doctrine should become a way of life so that from our hearts we grow in loving all the people as Jesus does. We learn to see past their walls, after His Spirit knocks down our walls. Have you had Jesus put His light on things deep within you that melted them away and made you feel even closer to Him? Then with His eyes of mercy, we can see other people's hearts and their needs. Our own strippings help give us this mercy. It is easy to judge, but it is more honest and humbling to identify with those with whom we come in contact.

All this too is a difference between the head and the heart, which are about 18" or one cubit away from each other. It can be a long 18" if your spirit isn't in tune with God's. Our natural way of thinking tends to cause us to judge things from the point of view as to whether they are good and or bad. But all that is from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and there is no Spirit life there. So it is Spiritually death to do that. But when we have learned to see with the eyes of the Tree of the Life of Christ Jesus within us, there is truly a flow of His Spirit that we partake of and that He alone gives. Only being truly in Him will we find the mind of Christ which passionately longs to rule within us. If these things are not happening, ask God to send you the Holy Spirit to teach you all things, for that is the kingdom of God come upon you. Head knowledge without the Spirit's leading is death to your ability to really know Jesus NOW. You really cannot enter into the kingdom of God now, into the heavenly things, without the Holy Spirit working within your being. The kingdom of God must be spiritually discerned. That is one reason why so many of the people who call themselves 'the church' or the 'Bride of Christ' are not in one accord. They think they are in the Spirit of Christ, but have never really known Him. They just know about Him, which is also a death state. We are all capable of slipping into this death state by dwelling in the carnal mind, which, (like the laws religious men put on us,) is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. There is no life in Christ there.

But we were formed to move and have our being in Him. Many that have been born again have fallen asleep or/and been drugged by the doctrines and head knowledge of men who have never known God intimately by His Spirit's revelation of Him. Remember, flesh gives birth to flesh, and Spirit to Spirit.

What I also feel needs saying, because it is true for all of us, even if we have been awakened, is that we must become more and more sensitive to the Holy Spirit working within and outside of us. We must recognize our Savior by the Spirit. How can you love--truly love--one you do not know? Only Spirit gives birth to Spirit. This must become a daily, moment by moment, happening. His love should so permeate us that we radiate Him and His love. We must bask in His Presence--seek His face--become passionate from the moment we wake up in the morning, looking for our first love. (That is why we knew we needed to include the following Words from God's Spirit to our precious friend Cheryl.) AWAKE! Oh people of God. The kingdom of God has come upon you! May we each learn to continually be stirred in our hearts that we may know His Joy!

In Love,

Michelle

GOD'S WORD TO STIR HIS LIFE IN US

The following was given to a precious believer named Cheryl Mohr on March 5,1996. She is my sister in the Lord and in Christ we are one. Words cannot adequately express the kind of love God has given us for each other.

"We need to stop praying for revival and start praying for resurrection! We are dead to the passion of the Living God. We are self-conscious and ashamed of our nakedness and unable to accept the notion that He desires us. Indeed He does. He paid the greatest price to purchase our company--to free our souls from all bondage. How can we allow this sin of self-consciousness to separate us from His Glorious Embrace?

We sit around debating this thing called 'the Rapture' when what Christ is interested in is each one of us individually abandoning ourselves to being enraptured by Him. We are so afraid of losing control, but we must allow Him to take us and infuse us with His fire and passion, trusting that we will function to our utmost both spiritually and humanly if we are connected to and empowered by our Loving Lord.

For those who refuse this union there will be sadness, loneliness, and bitterness. For those who desire it, but fear what others think--or are held back by those who dare not go--there will be great frustration and utter disappointment in anything that is less. For those who surrender to the Great Lover there will be total fulfillment, contentment, and creative energy. A heart united--one with the heart, mind, and will of God. It may seem selfish to seek out such an experience, but more good deeds and help for humanity will come from a single moment of this total abandonment than from hours--even days of obligatory religious practice. We will not have to speak a prayer for we will become prayer.

Look up! Break free from all that men who have never been in this place have taught you. Renew your mind. Prepare for a new life--prepare for true joy! Taste and see that the Lord is good! You must kiss Him, drink of Him to know the extent of His goodness. Enjoy Him, experience Him, learn what love really is. Bask in His Presence--let Him open your emotions and flood you with His fullness. Only then will you be whole. Only then will you be truly effective and productive in all that you do in this world. Your entire life will change. You will find genuine success and happiness and compassion for mankind and strength to change what once appeared unchangeable. He is giving us back the garden. Do we want to live in this slum called earth or do we want to relocate to the beautiful place He created especially for us? The kingdom of God is here--NOW! Oh our precious Savior! Let not His sacrifice wait another moment! He paid the price for total reconciliation. Not so we could spend years and years looking at the Father through binoculars saying, 'Ah--someday.' Total reconciliation--oneness with our Creator. Fellowship. Passion. Rapture--true rapture. Walking in the garden--naked and unashamed.

Let Him lovingly remove the layers of garments that are hiding the beauty of who He made us to be. Let Him strip away one by one the garments--the rags of pride, self-pity, bitterness, and hatred and the other rags that cover us and confine us.

Let us then stand before Him, radiant, as He gazes upon us--His spotless Bride, and with the Love that created the first breath of life He tells us we are beautiful and carries us away to adore Him and be loved by Him forever.

This must come to pass. One heart at a time. Individual resurrection--from the death of religion to the Life created by God, lost, then purchased by the blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is finished. Surrender and be one less obstacle in His plan. Be made alive in Christ. Watch the world change. Inherit the kingdom. Dwell in the garden. Glory and Honor, Wisdom and Power--Praise and Thanks be to God now and forever. Amen."

"Fuel and nurture this passion privately then take it wherever you go. Do not seek Me in church, but take me into the church (and everywhere) and let the passion spread like wild fire. My will be done."