Pluggin’ In to the Power of God

My heavenly Father uses simple but very powerful metaphors and
illustrations to teach me things. Hopefully, He does the same for you.
The latest “illustration” I’ve gotten has to do with electricity:
basically how it works and how it flows in both the natural and the supernatural
realms. The parallels are extraordinary and I will deal with that in just a
few minutes.
But first, I need to share something with you that happened this
morning. It’s the kind of stuff that you don’t expect, but it really boosts your
life. I talk about it with you because that is one of the things I have been
called to do. And there’s nothing more powerful than a fresh and truthful
testimony (from anybody) that exalts God and His love for His kids. Especially
if it’s supernatural.
Listen, the day before Father showed me these truths, it had been tough
for Linda and I. All kinds of stuff was going wrong and frustration on my
part was ruling the day. Other than my family, my most prized possession on
this planet is my time, and I was “wasting” a lot of it putting out fires in
the day’s agenda. This was not my idea of a good time. You know the feeling.
It sucketh.
To top it off on that day, I decided to get some fresh air, so I went
out to my car...only to find that some clown had shot out the rear window of
the vehicle in my driveway during the night. I counted four “bullet holes”
and shattered glass all over the place. Man, I certainly didn’t need this
kind of stuff to add to my day. Bummer.
But thank God that He is teaching me to grow up spiritually and not to
be “circumstance-driven.” I’m learning that regardless of what happens down
here in the natural realm, Father’s plans and objectives for my life are
never affected, and are still intact and functioning bigtime. During all the
“stuff” that was hitting me that day, I was able to rest on the Word and His
never-ending presence. It wasn’t easy. But I’m His son and He’s my
friend...and I know...that I know...that I know that “He will never leave me nor
forsake me” (Hebrews 4:9-11)). He has proven it to me so many times.
At the end of the day, I was physically exhausted, a little down, and I
had lost the “spring in my step.” I went to bed thanking God anyway,
knowing full well that He would take a lousy day and make something great out of
it.
When I woke up in the morning, I layed on my side for a minute...and
I was still downcast (hey, it happens). But I knew it wouldn’t last when I
began speaking the Word, and walking by faith and not by sight (2 Corinthians
5:7)) Because God is my Dad, I have also learned to be up front and highly
personal with Him. So I said (as I often do): “Father, don’t let me fall.”
Almost immediately (in the Spirit), a rush of His presence fell down
upon me and His golden glory was all over me and my pillow and sheets as well.
God poured out His Love on me and there were twelve basketfulls left over.
This happens more and more often, but it still amazes me. Think about
it: the Creator of the universe loves me enough to make a house call on a
Friday morning during rush hour. He will do the same for you because He is
always a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6)). You don’t
have to see a cloud of glory to know that God is present, but it sho’ do help.
The entire atmosphere changed in that room, and I began to feel the
movement of the wind in my sails. I was ready to roll again. Darkness cannot
remain when LIGHT begins to shine.
But this is really the best part: For an hour or so afterwards, the Holy
Spirit reminded me of spiritual snippets I have learned that are crucial to
my walk. His short sermonette was not audible or anything like that. I just
saw it in my spirit...and it was given to me so that I could share it with
you (I’m a conduit and certainly not any kind of a prophet)..
Things like:
• Don’t focus on doing things for Jesus, but from Jesus.
• Whatever is not submitted (surrendered) to God is open territory to this
world and to the Devil.
• My imperfection is replaced with perfection when the Holy Spirit picks up
the slack and intervenes in my behalf. (I’ll deal with more of this next
time)

Pluggin’ In to the
Power of God
My heavenly Dad will go to any lengths to show us how the kingdom of God
works...so that we can pass His LIGHT onto others and bring blessing to
their lives. This particular lesson deals with the interesting parallels
between how electricity is channeled...and how the Gospel is spread...and the
pitfalls that are common to both.
Man did not invent electricity, he discovered it. God’s electrical force
has empowered His kingdom and this planet since Day 1. It began with “Let
there be light!”...then came the electrocution of the prophets of
Baal...then to the recording of the Ten Commandments (God’s finger was a
laser)...then through the light over the manger in Bethlehem...and then the lightening
and storms after Jesus was crucified.
(1) In the natural realm-- Through my own experience, I have learned how
electric power in a house is spread from the power source (the electric
company) to and through the various electric sockets in the home. Often times,
things go wrong and the flow of power is cut off and everybody is left in the
dark.
(2) In the supernatural realm--God is the Source of life and LIGHT to the r
ecipients of His power (that’s us). When things go amiss within us, this
power, too, is cut off and the Gospel message ceases to flow from within us
to others.
Let Me Explain by Example
It was on a Saturday morning that I was getting some work done around
the house. Suddenly, the lights went out in a certain portion of my home. I
determined which “breaker” might have flipped off, and went to flip it back
on...but it was okay. So then I deduced that the breaker was worn out and
needed replacing. I got a new breaker switch and put it on, but still nothing
happened. No power was flowing to my hallway entrance, my garage, the
downstairs bathroom, and a couple of other spots. I spent the next two hours
replacing light bulbs, sockets, etc. in that area,but to no avail. Electric power
was available from the breaker box (the source), but it wasn’t flowing.
I had no clue. So I picked up the phone and called my brother-in-law in
Austin, who is a designer and builder of beautiful homes. I told him about
my situation and immediately he knew exactly what the problem was. He
explained to me that electricity from the breaker box (the source) is channeled by
wires from the breaker to the first power outlet inside the house (the dual
“socket” where you plug in a lamp, television, etc.) But it doesn’t stop
there.
The power from the source is then channeled through wiring from that
outlet to another outlet...and from there to another outlet...etc., until a
specific portion of the home is wired for electrical power.
My brother-in-law then gave me specific instructions:
“Robert, go to the first power outlet that is wired from the source and
plug a lamp in and see if it lights up. I did and it did.
“Okay, Robert, now go the next power outlet that is on the same circuit
as the first one (#2) and plug the lamp into that one and see if it lights
up. I did and it didn’t.
“Robert, we have found your problem. The first outlet (#1) lit up the
lamp when you plugged it in because it was receiving power from the source.
However, it wasn’t passing electricity on to the next power outlet (#2)...and
then to the next power outlet (#3)...and and so on. All the he sockets after
the first one were dead.
The flow of power from the first power outlet to the rest of them was
stopped because there was something wrong inside socket #1, causing a
blockage. Although the outside plastic face plate looked clean and shiny, I decided
to take it off and look inside into the socket box.
What I found was loose wiring that was worn out and not tight with the
power source; I also found rust, cobwebs, roach droppings and dead roaches,
not to mention heavy dust. It was terribly unclean.
No wonder that the light from the source could not be spread to those
other sockets that desperately needed it.
Are you beginning to see where I’m going with all of this?
In comparison, what I heard from the Holy Spirit was short and sweet:
God is our ultimate SOURCE for the power that is needed to turn this world
around through LIGHT. God has opted to operate through people here on the
Earth...but much of the time He has trouble getting through us (the “sockets”)
to reach others, who can then reach others,.who can then reach others that
need God’s love, healing, guidance, and power to overcome life. But Deity has
a difficult time flowing through confusion and uncleanliness. We can change
that.
As born-again Christians we are greatly blessed, highly favored, and
deeply loved, and GRACE has forgiven our sins: past, present and future. But
our responsibility is to walk closely with the Father and cooperate with the
Holy Spirit in order to fine tune our performance here on the Earth. That’s
our part.
• Many people have a shiny exterior, but on the inside, we are a mess.
• There are those of us who are “loosely wired” to the kingdom of God and
have a hit and miss relationship with the Creator, and have minimal contact
with the Lord. Not good.
• There are those who are “rusty” on the Word of God and spend very little
time in meditation, seeking His face. Too often we walk in unbelief and
hardness of heart..
• There are those who are “burned out” because we live in the flesh and
operate under our own steam. Jesus’ yoke is easy and His burden is light.
Everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have should be
surrendered to the love and wisdom of Heaven. Great things will begin to happen when
we do.
• Too many of us look like too much of the unclean world. We have
unknowingly grown comfortable with filth, dead dreams and aspirations, unforgiveness,
unclean lips, and “political correctness.”
• Some of us are dusty on the inside, and our Bibles are dusty on the
outside.

Personally, I’m not one who likes to talk about this kind of stuff. I’m
not a preacher. But I have to do and say what I’ve been instructed. And I
have to be very careful in my own steps and my own life in order to become
more and more usable by my Father in Heaven. My Big Brother Jesus has
multitudinous instruction, blessings, and LOVE that he “desperately” wants to get
to His bride, the Church. It’s life and death.
I want His power and electricity to flow effectively through me...so
that I can help to bring LIGHT to others...and be able to receive light from
others as well..