Jun 9
THREE PHASES of TRANSITION
As the years have passed in my life and ministry I have gone through several times of “transition” I have noticed three distinct phases to transition, Desire, Discipline, and Delight. I’ll address the first, Desire, below and the other two in the next posts.
DESIRE
The first phase, Desire requires a very intense time of mental and spiritual reorientation. Here you experience one of two types of deep felt emotion, either elation or sorrow, as the reorientation becomes more defined.
Some, at first, experience elation only and with it a false sense of euphoria. I say “false” because at this time you sense the excitement of the future and seldom consider that hardship will eventually be mixed with destiny. You just want to get there - now - and like a bad penny, you cast any flickering thought that there might be a coming cost to your newfound destiny aside.
Some will experience sorrow because you are being directed to leave a place you have come to love. Others will have sorrow with the leaving of family. This might mean cutting the strings they have to you and/or you have to them. That cutting is often emotional and painful, but you cannot become a leader if strings of control are attached to you. In addition, you cannot follow the wind of the Holy Spirit if you are anchored to your friends or your family.
At this juncture in transition, it is as if God is taking you away from the desire of your heart and that departure often creates a spiritual quandary. So the Lord begins the process of making you uncomfortable where you are. Some might say, “He stirs the nest.”
Sometimes one feels both sets of emotions within minutes of each other as your desire for the location, job, or career to another location, job, or career.
One thing you can count on - when God orders you to go through a time of transition, regardless which emotion you have, God is bound to make you restless and uncomfortable to insure you become willing to leave where you are so you can become what He has created you to be. He is simply waiting for our “yes” to His direction and for our desire to become His desire. It is here that He gives us the “desires of our heart.”
Blessings,
John Paul Jackson
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Yeah, love this phase. For me it was leaving a job that I loved. LOVED! Perfect mix of my interests and abilities, but I gradually lost favor with the owners and my authority gradually evaporated and I was making a lot of money to sit and wonder what happened. I resigned on March 4th (March Forth!) and so now I suppose I’m in the discipline phase, but I’m not sure because I don’t know the details of that phase because John Paul Jackson likes to torment us, feeding us little crumbs of fabulous wisdom that we can only handle a bit at a time. I imagine learning patience is part of the discipline.
I believe “stirring the nest” references Deut. 32, where the eagle stirs up her nest. Eagles teach their babies how to fly by kicking them out of the nest, which is way up high so they have a long way to fall while they learn. Then she catches them and carries them. This is how I felt about my job: kicked out! Go! Fly! Too bad that you’re comfortable and warm and happy! Go!
All this is so affirming and uplifting and horrid all at the same time. But really, if I die much more, I’m gonna be a dead woman. : )
Good post, Desire, Discipline, & Delight… must say that I never thought of transition in these terms before, I’m looking forward to the next two installments.
Z
Exactly..Lord, let your desires always be my desires and my family’s desire!
Peace
Shirley C.
Thank you so much for sharing, what I surmise, is going to be another amazing set of insights.
What you, John Paul, have begun to describe, is exactly what I’ve been going through the last 3 years. Wave upon wave of it. I have yet to see the fulfillment of my destiny/desires, but the Lord shows me glimpses now and then.
My heart’s cry these last 2 years has been: “Lord, cause my thoughts, my desires and my will to line up with Yours.” What a painful process I signed up for, but in the midst I realize the process births something delightful. While I haven’t seen the end of this particular transition yet, I have complete faith that God is taking me somewhere fantastic!
Can’t wait to read the rest. Keep ‘em coming!
God Bless.
Vara
A difficult time for a baby is when they must be weaned. They are so concerned with losing what they are comfortable with that they do not recognize the value in what is to come.
Lk 5.39
God bless
David
PS, the 202 in Shreveport was Awesome!
Or, Have you ever seen how uncomfortable a prisone is when he has been released? He felt safer Inside! Change can be so hard, but so freeing, too. We can’t really grow without it.
After cancer, I am having a hard time beginning a new life. It is scary, because I feel so weak. Transition is a very vulnerable place. A lot of fears. But that is where God steps in. He really is our All in All, isn’t he?
Blessings,
Leslie
HELLO John Paul All the terms and sayings you and other people use in your blog is interesting. Some years ago I and my family came out of a cult church [ O.T.] type. We started to study church history [ how gory ] it was scary to see how many people died in the name of religion. GOD taught us outside a orginazation we were taught about the Holy Spirit by C. Stanleys book. Personal prophecy by Bill Hamon. Inerhealing by John and Paula Sandford. Our gifts by Don and Katy Fortune. The freedoms in Christ, I often wonder if most people know how importent that is for us as followers of Christ. Thr early church seemed to lay it aside I often pray that it dosent happon again. The reason I am writing this is to let you know that I enjoy learning new things about where GOD is working. HUGS to you.
Didn’t I just write that I was excited about seeing convergence about to happen? Ha ha. The joke’s on me! Must have been that false sense of euphoria, as today I am SO restless. Feelings are so fickle.
Things are crazy tough for me and my family right now. It just seems like it is one thing after another to the point of absurdity.
I don’t even now for sure the question rattling around through my head but if I were to get raw I would ask ‘is the worse the transition the better the end product?’ Or, are there times when there can be a really bad transition with little fruit to show? I just want to know that there is a point to all this…a good point. I think that would make it easier to get through.
One of Those
I know for me,transition happens on the heels of so much death. It’s painful,but is the only way.
Of course this ties into the topic of “Illusion and Delusion” that was covered. This is where I am at right now. I’m in a place where I cant even hear, think clearly, or believe.
However, I keep having this “picture” of me, lying on a very narrow road, limp and exhausted. The savior comes, picks me up, and carries me to the new place, where first my heart is restored. In this place, my DESIRES are being transformed into his. Some just need some “tweeking”, while other desires remain question marks?
It is only now, in this painful place where I am, that I can see, he first needed to rescue me from myself, my will, and some big mistakes that were coming…..I no longer want the enemy called “good”, I want and desire his best.
I love what all of you have written. I think that these insights about transition are giving me language for prayer that I haven’t had before. I feel like I’m back in school! I must be in the discipline phase because my soul keeps shouting, ‘Is it time for the delight yet?’ Write on John Paul!
We desire bigger greener pastures. Wide open spaces! No dangerous animals lurking there. The shepherd knows where He is going.
Why do we straighten the knee with our heels dug in when we see the livestock shoot that brings us to the better place? Sometimes we run in circles trying to find an exit other than the vortex that is calling our spirit. Out go the fingernails or claws hanging onto every nook and cranny we can grab hold of! Here we leave remnants of our losing struggle to pass on through. A twisted ankle here, a bit of hide there along the sides of the dreaded funnel.
If we just followed the Voice of Truth and paid no mind to the closing in that threatens to remove our baggage we would have a lot more hide left when we get to where He is going.
Talking about me here.
God bless
David
I feel like hiding in a winepress.
God has been speaking to me much lately of Freedom. It seems that each time I go through a transition phase I gain more freedom to be and do His perfect will. And I have only recently had my eyes opened to see it this way. Each new deeper level of knowing Him requires less of me, I need a new wineskin for I have outgrown the one I am now wearing. And in the beginning of being fitted with a new wineskin, it is painful-designed to bring me to my knees in prayer as His Light shines on me revealing things I could not see before. I have known His rod of discipline and comfort. I have bucked against Him when fear has risen up and I gave place to it so many, many times that He at times has called me His wild-eyed stallion. And yet His love for me has never failed nor ever will. The place He desires to take me to is what He calls ‘Freedom’ and it is from this place where I can be and do Father’s perfect will moment to moment. I do hope to arrive at this place, the sooner the better, and then ‘park it’ so to speak and yet what I hear is ’smell the roses along the way’! It has become a comfort to me to know that transition is ‘normal’ for all those He loves, and He sure loves us!
We are restless, and left wondering “what’s next?”
What is this desire you are speaking of?
I feel like a failure in the Kingdom.
So I have a question - have you ever thought you’ve *missed it* on the transition in terms of timing? Can you speak to that a little bit? How do you regain that ground or do you? Does the Lord give you another chance?
If you’ve gone through this experience, I’d like to hear how you got through that season. Any tools for this part of the journey would be appreciated.
Blessings and thanks,
Paula
PS: Col 1:3-6 for you
Brenda, it grieves me that you feel like a failure in the Kingdom. I hope this will help you…The moment I truly met Y’shua I fell in love with Him and my natural desire was to please Him as I am sure yours is too. My journey started with His greatest commandment in Matthew 22:37. And as I began to practice loving Him wilh all my heart, soul and mind, I was led to John 14:15 where Y’shua qualifies what it truly means to love Him. I soon learned that in my own power of trying to obey Him, I crashed and burned….a lot! Through much prayer I knew His rebuke but also much more He revealed His love to me. It was and still is His love that heals me and sustains me. As I received His love, I responded with loving Him more and my desire for Him grew. I came to the place of Psalm 73:25 and not too long after Psalm 40.8. There are many other scriptures that speak of His will concerning the desire of man and I have no doubt that He greatly desires to reveal these to you. I have come to believe that God is far more interested in our character than what we do in His kingdom. Are not the fruit of the Spirit issues of the heart, soul and mind of man and I believe that when the fruit of the Spirit is mature enough in us, we will hear what to do for Him in His kingdom.
I know impatience well, it is fueled by fear and I have stumbled many times because of it. Currently, I am learning to walk “in step” with Y’shua which means for me not in front, not behind, and not drawn away by distraction. In Ecclesiastes 9:11 the Word says the race is not to the swift. The Lord showed me once that in my race there are no competitors, just me and Him! So who am I trying to beat? And…if I would let Him lead, I wouldn’t fall so much! So anyway, hope this helps and God Bless you today!
What of transitions that the Lord places at your feet and you joyfully say “yes, Lord, yes”, only to step out toward the prize…toward the fulfillment of your hearts desire…and have the rug pulled out from under your feet? Is it all a matter of timing or are we fighting against powers and principalities? What of the glimpses of transition that leave your hope deferred and your heart sick? Why does the Lord leave you in this place of intense longing? Not just for temporal, but for the eternal? For His Glory, for His presence?
Thank-you John Paul, with all the topics racing through my mind everyday, for i love to think heavenly stuff, biblical stuff, because it kills time fast on the job (which does not require my full attention though), your writings are like “special troopers” of the topics not easily found elsewhere. They are so special, they are so kept low key in me until the moment they are all needed in meditating to see the “picture” in the scriptures. Then, bless the Lord! I am a changed!
Very true. I love the fact that you mention how God makes us restless. HOLY UNREST is one of the things that I Beleive is truly a trademark of spirit blown folks. Its true that we find comfort, solace, and contentment in Christ in the inner spirit-man, but also the outer flesh man can be stirred when this inner contentment gets us moving in a new direction.
It is sort of like the martyrs and people of previous centuries who in the transition of them standing for light in a dark time, they were burned or tortured in terrible ways, with joy, laughter, and the sparkle of the kings light in their eyes.
I am always desiring to more than any purpose or destiny in life, always desiring to spend time at the kings table, at the feet of the master, and at the chest of the love. But I found that much Like you refered to at ‘voice of the prophets’ that when we walk into a transition time that things sort of fall into place.
I recently signed a contract for a business venture to which the woman gave me clear descriptions of what she was looking for. It described me to a “t” at which time I also talked with my landlord who made a deal with me that is unbeleivable favor, and to which it seems that people say “we have been looking for someone like you.” I have never had this happen on such a massive scale, and yet it is one of the most ‘transitionary’ times of my life. Everyday intended plans have been bypassed for Gods directive callings. Unusual to say the least, and yet for the kingdom very normal.
Many people who have been my friends over the years, would hear me talk about things I love and my desires, and they would see me lay them down over and over, walking away because ‘it wasn’t the time’ and they thought I was crazy. Now that I waited years to step out in some things, because I wanted to be on Gods timing, it is as if the desires I once had, are now after they were layed down, given up and how I went in a totally new direction, now God has ressurected them, and has me walking in the very things I longed to do, in a new light, in a new day, and in the purposes and timing of HIS will.
Its the beauty and wonder of God, and I am so blasted by his goodness everyday. He really did know the timing, and all this time I was afraid I was missing the mother load of fish, and Jesus was saying “Wait until I say the word, and then cast your net on the OTHER side of the boat”
I know the goodness of God is going to continue, but more than the ’stuff’ God is doing, I am so thankful for God himself, and my desire continues to stay in the very essence of loving God everyday. The times at his feet (which is continual really) are the most treasured of all.
I can identify the euphoria of the transition and not seeing the difficulties that come with it. Almost like the mentality of “if this just happens, then my life will be free of ________ (fill in the blank). Not recognizing even after the transition, more will be required of me, i.e., growth and responsibility. Back again to having my soul subordinated to my spirit, instead of my soul ruling over me. The “great American dream” which for me is the promise of soul fulfillment (and an empty promise at that)dying and God’s dream coming nearer. Again the great tectonic plates of my life are shifting and like in an earthquake, I’m grasping at something to hold onto, but what has seemingly held me up in the past (an illusion) is seen for what it is, and I see how really weak I am.
Blessings,
Dennis
I have found that even desire requires effort sometimes. I find myself satisfied with myself or with what I am working to become and often unless the Lord causes me difficulty, I do not move forward.
Presently I am facing a difficulty that I consider a “sore spot”. It goes away then comes back again. Perhaps this is a prolonged transition?
Whatever the case, the Lord is good and his love brings tears to my eyes.
Trusting God through transition is what I pray for all of us.
sheep are so funny they will eat in the same spot until the grass is gone roots and all and starve unless the shepard comes along and leds them to greener pastures thank you Father for taking me to greener pastures and fresh fire spring water now i say how wow and now to all my questions i see Jesus waking on the water and i dive out of the boat into the fire and will not be burned blow winds of change blow i surrender again broken bread and poured out wine increase the joy your will be done not mine thank you Holy Spirit for more love to give away Shalom
once again the Father of us all uses john paul to speak a healing word golden apples on settings of silver blessings to john paul and thank you for going through the fires and sharing His love with us Shalom
Hey, once again it’s so great to get to read all of those things with so much wisdom in them. Wow.
Actually, I myself feel like I might be in phase 2: Discipline.
I feel like I have to learn a _lot_ in this area. When I grew up, I definitely was lazy in school, because I was so intelligent and everything was so easy for me. So I did not have to learn how to work with discipline and perseverance. Now at the age of 44 I’m so much used to this - it “feels” like it’s almost impossible to change it.
And there’s also the question about how one can tell when to exercise self-discipline in a good way and when to allow God’s grace to operate in one’s life?
Still, at the moment, I’m very grateful that God is speaking to me that I _have_ to get into the habit of exercising self-discipline to some degree… if I want to get deeper into the things of God.
So that’s why I’m also very much looking forward to your next post, John Paul
[By the way: I hope my use of the English language is not too bad
I never lived in an English speaking country...]
Anyway - Blessings and love to all of you!!!
Hi John Paul,
I was in the process of removing a few files and programs from my work computer today, when I opened your site and began to read the current blog about transition.
I am right there. I lost my job last month. One I had held for over 17 years. It hurts. I feel like I lost a limb, or a close friend.I understand what you mean about the emotional rollercoaster.I got the news while waiting for our flight home.
Last month my wife were seated on an airplane at DFW. We were returning home from our 102 class at DFW Bridge Church. We stayed through the Sunday and were returning to San Diego on Monday.
Sunday morning Pastor Paul was teaching about Gods Promises,Provisions,Protection,Presence, in our lives,it was great. He then realesed an impartation of the Fire of God. It was incredible.I found my self on the floor, face up, and could feel my legs being pulled, stretched longer.I knew what this meant, and I said “yes” to His stretching,growing process. I wasn’t aware of how costly it was to say yes. I thought my work enviroment was my service unto Him. It had no intention of leaving, but to continue building a place for Him within the Health Care community of my employement.
The intresting thing about our trip home that Monday was we were seated next to Dr. of Internal medicine who was on his way to a conference in San Diego. He shared with what he sees as problems in medicine and how he felt unable to help his patients. Thats all we needed to hear.He is a believer,but was not aware of the research done on healing prayer in the medical rournals. He hadn’t heard of the miracles of past revivals or even what was happening in Irving and Lakeland.I could see his receptivity,and the Lords leading, so I asked him if this current impatration of authority of the Lord and the fire was something that he wanted and could use. He said yes.Lisa and I prayed and gave away what we believe we had just recieved.
I asked him how he felt, he said he felt realy good inside and he couldn’t wait to call his wife and tell her the good news.
John Paul,
Thank you agian for your encouragement and instruction.
Please pray that my wife and I are able to ( sync) to His desire.
John
I am tired of hard transitions to the point of dread. I personally hope they are over and this is not the season for another one.
The word transition can sound like dread…
The last thing we must do to follow Christ is to drop our net.
Well, my husband and I were both given a dream the same night that led us to a church, with a message of dropping our net to follow Christ, and of course there were other factors that convinced us of this.
ONE EXAMPLE: My four year old daughter climbed up on my lap, looked at me and said “Mantle.” I asked, “Did you say mantle?” She said “Yes! Mantle.” My daughter did not know God had told me that week, in my prayer closet, to lay down the idol, so He could hand me the mantle. Ironically, the very moment she was speaking this, my husband was handing in his resignation. I asked my four year old, “Who told you this?” She replied, “Jesus!” I then went on to ask her, “What is the Mantle?” She replied, “Instuctions to soon fill up two hearts.” Again, she did not know God gave me previous instructions on resources in transit.
To conclude, my husand gave his two weeks notice and walked out. Mind you, I am a full-time homemaker, who homeschools two children, and in 2000 was diagnosed with a form of Muscular Dystrophy affecting my hands and feet.
God, for the past year has been cleansing us from thirteen years, of what I call, left hand development and religious spirited influences (OUCH!), which began for us at the 101 - The Art of Hearing God conference.
I have written two books, just finishing my third, and God told me this third book will be the established beginning of our ministry.
This is a difficult transition, since we are now basically out of money, and my house is now partially packed, because of a glimpse we were given of the future, after the 102 conference. The word dread is still standing there staring us in the face, and yes! We are still prisoners of HOPE (Zechariah 9:12), but even through all this, I known God is in control, and we are looking past the dread and looking to Nahum 1:9 - Affliction does not come a second time.
I’ve been thinking about transition in my own life and it’s fitting that I somehow have found the time to check out this blog which I hadn’t done in a while.
Recently I’ve been thinking about moving to a different country that is so completely foreign to me. There is an excitement there and it’s been my desire to go now for over 10 years and to see this day coming closer. And although there is excitement I think there is mixed emotions for me right now that I’m having to work through because it will for a short time take me away from a city and country I absolutely love and pray that I can be a change agent for the Lord Almight here in my own land. And so the leading to go into another country is quite puzzling for me to say the least but I think I will return with an amazing testimony!
In the mean time I’m grounded to know that I’m going to have to work on my second language and prepare to learn a third language and begin to raise the finances to get myself there and all the other stuff that needed to make this trip possible. I guess I’m heading into the discipline part of the transition.
I think I read what I needed to read for the confirmation that I’ve been looking for. I think perhaps my number one focus needs to be my relationship with the Lord and not place future ministry as an idol. Perhaps time away from my city and country will be life changing. I’m open for the Lord do what He desires to do in my life even if it means taking me to another country.
God Bless!
Correction above…
I wrote….”there is an excitement there and it’s been my desire to go now for over 10 years. And to see this day coming closer has been stirring things up for me. It is like the Lord stirring the nest.” ….
Once again Lord Bless all you’all!
Dear John, (whom just got graduated from your previous job)
While this may be a trying time, can I just tell you that what you said to in your post sounds like the most exciting time!
I know that when you have something like a good job of 17 years and it suddenly is one day gone it seems rough, but it sounds to me like God blasted you with himself and so after such a renewed place in God, you HAD to move on from what you knew into something you didn’t know. This is wonderful transition, and while it might not seem like it, it brings us into new experiences of heaven. There was a guy by the name of Rick Stivers who had this sort of thing happen during the toronto outpouring, and God has him in Canada now (i think originally from Cali) and he is working with ‘troubled’ youth. From what I understand, He went to the police and told them to give him the most troublesome youth and that God was going to work in them and they would be changed for good. He transformed an entire community by going to the ones the community had rejected, and bringing out their good qualities, in the meantime he also was building the community because he paid these kids and put them to work building new buildinggs and transforming not just their insides, but the outside environment of the town. You just never know where GOd will send you and what he might do.
Be encouraged because when You say Yes to God, he might take you through some ‘interesting’ situations, but when you come out the other side, you will be in tune with all that he has for you.
bless you on your journey!
Our Moving, Seeking God: vain repetition as opposite of immediacy.
Repetition as stagnancy
Immediacy as contact
Connection as moving and dynamic.
In the dream I was in a representation, a similitude of the world that represented the motivations for the Pastoral ministry. It looked like a school combined with the everyday world. The everyday world was the accreditation of the school. I was watching a Pastor in a church setting. He was preaching, his preaching was old and repetitious, it lacked immediacy. He was not reaching the people; his preaching was self focused which made it repetitious.
Then, in the dream, I was told that immediacy, variety and originality is within the connection with others.
I was then outside, deep in a city, next to what looked like an oil refinery. It was very hot and bright outside. I was there sitting on a hill with wheat growing on it. I saw a black man moving through the city; and he started to walk up the hill where I sat. We started talking. His face then became accentuated to indicate importance. I was told that his face contained the revelation of his character.
He said that he was a Pastor; however, I saw that he was from a new move of the Pastoral.
He was extremely distinguished looking. He said that he was from a highly accredited school, an Ivy League school, like a Harvard. The school and the education that was exhibited in his characteristics were from helping people – connection. He exuded a brilliant immediacy.
This new move of the Pastoral would be connected to high governmental position, Ivy League schools; it wouldn’t look like the church in the past, but “secular”. It would remove barriers between classical church and the people – it would be a wide movement across all the cities
Although he was only about 40 years old; his face was very lined, but not from wrinkles of old age. I heard that the lines on his face are a sign of his character, that wisdom will be one of the primary indications of this new move of God.
He then continued to move on through the city …
Dream received – June 8, 2008
I think I am between the Desire and discipline stage.
Yes this phase must be what wrapped up for me in 2007. February 2007 I was let go from a job that I was “loved” in. No unemployment went on to have a great year of peace like I’d never experienced before beliveing god to show me how to step out in my own internet sales business. Then this year 2008 I’ve been evicted in April and had to move into my mother’s home where she constantly wants me to know I’m unwelcome and that this is very temporary oh JOY, on to phase 2 :).
To clarify what I just said I was evicted from my apartment of 10 years and my mother is born again, speaks in tongues and is surrounded by prayer partners. I so appreciate this ministry after many many years in religiondome it has been life affirming to be able to hear truth about life presented without fear and pretense.