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Pouting, Or Parting?

by Tonja Taylor
10/28/2022 / Christian Living

To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven: 2 A time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted, 3 A time to kill and a time to heal, a time to break down and a time to build up, 4 A time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 5 A time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, 6 A time to get and a time to lose, a time to keep and a time to cast away, 7 A time to rend and a time to sew, a time to keep silence and a time to speak,8 A time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

This past week, I've done a bit of what some might call "pouting"--but also parting ("rending").

The "pouting" was really grief and sorrow, from a relationship with a spiritual leader which, no matter what I've done--or not done--could never get back to the right real attitude, but only poorly-disguised hostility that has just baffled me! Thinking back through the years, there have been numerous things that added up, and the last act of hatred was just the "straw that broke the camel's back." We can walk in love and do our part, but there is a point where, if the other part is not going to take responsibility for change, then we must choose to leave the wrong situation! God's life for us is ZOE, and He revealed to me that I'd been under constant anxiety and other negative emotions, for over 18 years!

However, the LORD truly takes what the enemy means for evil and works it for good, for us who love Him and are the called according to His purpose (Genesis 50:20 and Romans 8:28)! Hallelujah!

God is the God of reconciliation. He is perfect in all His ways.

People, however--including spiritual leaders, who can be as hypocritical as any of the rest of us, are not. We humans tend to want to idolize leaders, but we can only truly look to our Master, Jesus, to be perfect.

However, there is a responsibilty to walk as closely as possible to the Word, and to recognize and repent and work with the LORD to change wrong behavior. (LORD, help us all!)

We cannot change anyone. Only the Holy Spirit can. It's not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of God that anything good happens.

As verse 7 says, "There is a time to rend..." and, as many ministers have stated, "Whatever can be shaken will be shaken."

In other words, there is a time to stay, and a time to leave. It was a horrible shaking, and other things have ended "violently" in my life at times, but I know now that things had to be that way, to get me to even consider changing my path and forging into new lands and promises.

God is good and all good, and He is never to blame!

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.--I John 1:5

It's a great comfort to me that He knows every detail of my life, and thus works it all out for the best of me, His precious daughter, and for every person who will trust Him!

1 O Lord, you have searched me [thoroughly] and have known me. 2 You know my downsitting and my uprising; You understand my thought afar off. 3 You sift and search out my path and my lying down, and You are acquainted with all my ways. 4 For there is not a word in my tongue [still unuttered], but, behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. --Psalm 139:1-4, AMPC

Many leaders have left the church the past several months, and, although I never would have thought I'd be leaving too, I am. And I have perfect peace about it!

Now [in Haran] the Lord said to Abram, Go for yourself [for your own advantage] away from your country, from your relatives and your father’s house, to the land that I will show you.--Genesis 12:1, AMPC

Even though with all that's happened through the years, I was still surprised, but when you just know that you know that you know something (with the LORD's help), you can't explain it. It's just right--no matter what your mind says about it! You just know that you're supposed to do something (or not do something), and this is a sublime and priceless thing; being led by the Holy Spirit, Who knows all things.

Something can seem very good and right, but still be wrong. When the "red flags" keep happening--and there had been more and more of them the past few months--then it's time to obey the Holy Spirit, no matter what it seems like; no matter what anyone thinks about it.

Just like ministers have counseled one spouse to leave who was being abused in a relationship, and stayed and stayed, hoping the abuser would change (ask me how I know, from a terrible first marriage over 20 years ago!), there is a time to leave a church body, when the spiritual leadership is not causing spiritual growth, or is causing spirtual growth, but with a broken covering.

I'm not an expert to teach on any of this. I just know what I've experienced; that what kept happening, even though some things were right and I have been blessed in different ways, were not lining up with the Word, and just because I kept trying to ignore and overlook and forgive and forget about these things does not make them right!

Yes, all Christians can be hypocritical, including me. There are no perfect spiritual leaders. All leaders need prayer, especially spiritual leaders, and I do pray often for many. However, if I'm going to follow a spiritual leader, I expect them to be helping me to improve, and be examples to me.

The LORD has not told me that is wrong. He has, however, assured me of His Love, and He has given me great peace about leaving this congregation. He has shown me where my new home on earth is, and I'm excited about it.

He has give me strength and vision and courage to rise above this and go with Him to new places in Christ!

The deepest fear of a true Christian is of not pleasing the LORD. (However, once we receive Christ as our Savior and LORD, He covers us with His blood, and we always please Him. Then, out of love and honor for Him, we do works of faith to bring Him glory and honor, that we may go deeper with Him, and that others may know Him.) But these verses from Luke comfort me, from Luke 1:71-75, AMPC:

71 That we should have deliverance and be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who detest and pursue us with hatred; 72 To make true and show the mercy and compassion and kindness [promised] to our forefathers and to remember and carry out His holy covenant [to bless, which is all the more sacred because it is made by God Himself] 73 That covenant He sealed by oath to our forefather Abraham: 74 To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our foes, might serve Him fearlessly 75 In holiness (divine consecration) and righteousness [in accordance with the everlasting principles of right] within His presence all the days of our lives.

I've checked with Him, to make sure this was not a false peace, and I have not stayed out of church. I listen to the Word and read it every day, and pray and worship. I immediately found another church where I know the Word is truly preached and followed (not that the old place where I'd been over 18 years didn't follow the Word. It does, in many ways. But with the caliber of what it stands for, I pray it will grow deeper and not just wider. I believe that is the intent of the leadership, and I pray that happens. Meanwhile, I'm going elsewhere, and I'm happy about it!

We know the Truth and He sets us free (John 8:31,32)!

We trust God, our loving Daddy Who gave His perfect Son to die the most excruciatingly horrible death for us on the cross. We will never understand everything. We cannot make others do right; we can pray and ask God to influence their hearts

It has been quite a kick in the gut with this latest development, and it took me a few days to get over it. However, the LORD has been faithful to comfort me and hide me in the Secret Place, and, like an eagle recovering from wounds, to wash and heal and restore me, as only His Spirit and His Word can do!

When we are weak--and I was very weak this past many days--much more than I had been in a while, the LORD our God is strong. He is our Jehovah Nissi, Who constantly fights for us!

As He drew me to worship and pray and just rest in Him, He spoke to me in visions and has freed me and helped me look forward to new things.

Truly, as only He can do, the Spirit of Grace always makes things all right for us His children. Great is His faithfulness, always!

May grace (God’s favor) and peace (which is perfect well-being, all necessary good, all spiritual prosperity, and freedom from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts) be multiplied to you in [the full, personal, precise, and correct] knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.--2 Peter 1:2, AMPC

Blessed be the LORD, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever!

Blessed be the Lord, Who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. Not one word has failed of all His good promise which He promised through Moses His servant.--I Kings 8:56, AMPC

Blessed be the Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even the God Who is our salvation! Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!--Psalm 68:19, AMPC

Through books, courses, presentations, service, prayer, worship, and more, Tonja and her husband live to exalt God. Her series for girls, P.O.W.E.R. GIRL ADVENTURES, is now out (books I-V), along with LEGACY; YOUR HOLY HEALTH: VISIONS OF THE KING, and more. See the "River Rain Creative" YT channel.

Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com-CHRISTIAN WRITERS

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