THE IN BETWEEN

Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform [it] until the day of Jesus Christ:”

I love going to Daytona Beach, Florida for vacation. My parents would take my sister and I to Daytona every summer for years. Now that I have a family of my own, Daytona Beach and Orlando has become one of our favorite places to get some R&R and see Mickey Mouse!

I always hated the drive in between Indianapolis and Daytona Beach when I was a kid. I just wanted to get there but my parents never flew. We would drive 18 hours straight through. Now I drive my family to Florida and make my kids go throught the torment I experienced as a youngster. But now I actually enjoy it. I have come to a place where I appreciate the experiences as we drive down the interstate. We have some memorable moments driving this long stretch of highway that we often talk and laught about.

Spiritually, God has been dealing with me about the “in between season" of our spiritual journey. I have a many dreams to accomplish for the Kingdom of God as many of you do. I have come to a place where I’m enjoying the journey and not so consumed with the end result. As my Pastor says, “ministry is not a ladder you climb, but a journey you walk.” I am enjoying the journey and I’m actually greatful for the pain and struggle of the “in between.” It is our struggle that makes us who we really are.

Let me explain. I believe that there is always pain and struggle in between your dream and your destiny. Every great man or woman of God has faced some sort of pain or tribulation as they’ve pursued their destiny.

·        Jacob had ugliness (Leah) in between his promise and his princess (Rebekah).

·        David had a Goliath in between his field and his throne

·        Joseph had a pit in between his dream and destiny

·        Daniel had a den of lions in between his gift and his greatest revelations

·        Gideon had a poor mindset to conqueor in between his call and his courage to lead

·        Jesus had a cross in between the creation of His people and the ransoming of His people

All of these great men had to press through their “in between season”. Your pain will either propel you to a platform or paralyze you where you are.

Don’t give up in between your dream God birthed in your spirit and fulfillment of your destiny!

My Charges Blotted Out

Colossians 2: 13-14, 13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;  14Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

I love this scripture with all of my heart. I hold to it close and declare it when the enemy tries to remind me of my past or condemn me when I feel like I don’t measure up to God’s standards. Let’s break it down.

First, Paul says that we were dead in our sins but Jesus has quickened us together with Him. The word quickened means to “make one with”. In other words we were caught red handed in sin but Christ came and made us “one” with Him. We now stand in Him and He is perfect and blameless which makes us blameless. How incredible is this? You and Jesus are One!

Secondly, He says that He has forgiven ALL my trespasses. The word trespass is the Greek word paraptōma which means a lapse or deviation of truth and uprightness or to sin and perform a misdeed. Jesus has forgiven us of ALL our lapses, deviations of walking in truth, and our misdeeds. His word declares that He has cast our sins as far as the east is from the west.

Thirdly, He has blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that were against us and nailed them to the cross. Blotting out hear means to obliterate, plaster or wash away, wipe clear, erase, and to do away with. This is the greatest news in the world. No wonder they call it the “good news”! Not only did Jesus blot out all my sin but He nailed them to the cross that He died on. Our sins have been annihilated. This news should bring comfort and joy to your soul today.

I imagine it this way: I’m in a court room and the prosecutor (the devil) brings all these accusations against me. He stands and names sin after sin, trespass after trespass that I have committed. I begin to hang my head because the truth is that I actually committed these sins that the enemy is sharing to the Judge. After his accusations, it is so obvious that I’m guilty. I am dead in my sin, caught red handed and these ordinances are a book full.

Then I raise my head and say, “Judge it is true. I’m guilty of every handwritten ordinance brought against me today. But, I placed my heart and faith in Jesus Christ and His word says that He has quickened me together with Him.” Then Jesus stands up and says, “It is true Father, he has placed his life in My hands.” The Judge (Father God) then opens the book of ordinances and the pages are sopping wet in His Son’s blood. The Father looks at me and the enemy and says “I don’t see any of these handwritten ordinances against him. All that I see are pages of my Son’s blood.”  The enemy huffs and leaves the room in frustration and I’m overwhelmed with joy realizing that my sins have been blotted out!

I write this to encourage any person today that feels down, discouraged, overwhelmed, or condemned by the enemy. If your life is in Jesus, realize your sins are forgiven, your past forgotten, and your best days are before you. You are ONE in Christ and He has blotted out your trespasses!