For those who are actually pursuing a deeper, vibrant relationship with God there is a cost. Yes, salvation is a free gift from God through Jesus the Messiah, but the spiritual life many search for is only found by letting go of the old in order to gain the new. In other words you gain by losing. The loss is of nothing you can hold onto, it is a loss of a thread of something that you might think is good, but it is actually keeping you from your destiny. It is a virus, an infection, a germ that needs eradicating before it can metastasize.

ALL NEW THINGS BEGIN IN DARKNESS
From pregnancy, to creation, to anointing, every new day begins in darkness. It has been that way from the first day of creation and it continues today. There are three levels or deep times of darkness that we will encounter on the road to true, pure spirituality. With each one you feel like you are immersed in a deeper darkness than you have ever been in before. At each deeper level you see less clearly, if at all, where you thought you were going. During each new level you most likely will not understand the purpose of it and why God is allowing you to go through such a dark, difficult time.

You do not go through these times back to back. There is a season of recuperation and rest between each one. You can stop and not go on to the next one, but if you do that, you have chosen to walk a more worldly walk and there one is susceptible to a deeper, evil darkness.

JUSTIFYING OUR OLD LIFE
At the beginning of all three dark nights there is a natural tendency to look into our life to see what is wrong with us. Usually the first things we find are not the issue God is getting at, things like anger, jealousy, fear, are real issues, but they are surface issues. When we start to get closer to the real issue we will find that we will tend to justify the very matter God is after, that in itself is a clue to what this time is all about. It may be the actions we have taken, emotions we have harbored, and why we do what we do, but much of the time we actually believe we have a right to do it, feel it, or think it – at least initially.

When we touch the issue God is after we will often naturally recoil and in so doing it becomes easy to blame someone or some event that impacted us. We actually think that what happened gives us a valid reason for doing, thinking, feeling the way we do. We may even believe we can continue what we have been doing without any guilt.

SELF-IDENTITY
What may surprise you is that most who enter this Dark Night find they actually take some form of self-identity from the very issue God is wanting to reshape or get rid of in our life. It may be attitudes, ego, self-promotion, control, manipulation, or a thousand other issues, yet each one will keep us from the leadership and influence we should be having on others. To reach the purpose for which God created us, we must have no thread of iniquity that is not being addressed.

Even for a while after we are well within the dark night’s eerie confines we will continue to do the blame shift or use the problem as a crutch – for a short while. To some that short while may be a day, to others that may take a week or even a year, but it will eventually come to an end and the quicker the better.

A SENSE OF FAILURE
At some point in all three phases, as we finally realize that what we have self-justified is actually hindering our destiny, and with this realization there is often a sense of failure or sorrow or both. This is actually the initial sign of healing, you are on you way out. It is the light at the end of a long tunnel, it is hope for a better life and it is soooooo refreshing. Though you know there is still the rest of the tunnel to go through, you know you will make it. However, up to that point, which occurs at each level, you’re pretty sure you won’t.

THREE DARK NIGHTS
The three dark nights are commonly known as the Dark Night of the Wilderness or Desert, the Dark Night of the Soul, and the Dark Night of the Spirit. One leaves the first two with a hunger to get on with life, to accomplish something and in so doing a hunger to please God. The dark Night of the Spirit is a little different, but we’ll get to that later.

Next post I’ll address the Wilderness or Desert, which is the entry level to our greatest change.

Blessings,
John Paul

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

Charles Dickens’ opening statement in a Tale of Two Cities very accurately sums up what we often feel during times of transition. Everything changes and continues to change. Sometimes the change is so prolonged that it seems even change is changing: What we thought was supposed to be the end result doesn’t seem to be anymore. Whether it is a forced transition or a voluntary one, there are paradoxical emotions and thoughts that swirl between joy and sadness, hope and discouragement, patience and impatience. Regardless of what precipitated our time of transition, during transition the unexpected becomes the norm.

THE PROBLEM OF FLYING THROUGH CHANGE
So often, we fly through our changes without truly experiencing them, without knowing the Divine’s deeper purpose in allowing them. We keep thinking that if we can just get to where we are going, everything will be okay, or that we will finally be happy when this is over. We may even tell ourselves that this should not be happening to us. Sometimes we simply move numbly through transition, floating through our days, as though not anchored to anything. This is problematic because in all of these states, we remove ourselves from our spiritual anchors.

ANCHORS
In transition we need anchors. Anchors tell us that God is in this change. His hand is working through all things and changing spiritual matter deep within our innermost shadowed caverns. We are somehow alert to the fact that when this transition is completed, our future will emerge — but we can never shortcut it. You see, transitional changes to our lives are actually meant to bring changes in our lives — i.e., the conclusion is not nearly as important as the process.

CLOUDED PERCEPTIONS
We don’t normally realize this truth until we have exited the transition. That being said, when we realize we are entering a transition, or a darkened place, we need to understand that our perceptions will be clouded as well. In these times, it is good to have spiritual anchors, prayer, biblical roots and friends to stabilize us. To God, these times are important enough to our future that they are worth His allowing them. Yes, our today’s are also important to God, but so are our tomorrows, and transition is one of His means of getting us there.

These spiritual anchors allow us to slow down our thoughts, to refocus, to take courage and to release faith in Him who is far more capable of managing our lives than we are. If we too speedily charge ahead, we neglect to live the life we have, the life He has given us. We become so intent on tomorrow, we lose all recognition of the preciousness of today; if we continue to speed ahead for too long, we risk missing what God has for us to learn. In such cases, we have to go through the process all over again, and that can turn pretty ugly as self-doubt and self-worth constantly lord over us and the darkness seems to thicken.

TRYING TO CHANGE CHANGE
What we will eventually understand is that the one thing we cannot change is change itself. No moment, no echo system, no ethos, however perfect it seems, can be maintained forever. Life moves on, and we are swept along with it. Life is a process, and we are all works of God in His process. It is only through surrender to our unknown future that we find stability and peace. It is through this process that true life actually becomes a stabilizing current that moves us toward the purpose for which we were created.

THE CYCLE OF PROGRESS
It is in accepting life’s processes that we become free to experience these bittersweet glories of transition. No matter how difficult, life is beautiful; no matter how beautiful, life is difficult. It is this paradox that releases compassion. It is through compassion that individuals are touched, lives are changed and others are provoked toward their destinies.

Everything in life has cycles: the Earth, the trees, the crops, even our daily lives. Our lives impact others, and our lives are impacted by others. In the end, it is that impact that determines our everlasting residence with God. I find that so much of my frustration with transition comes from my refusal to accept life’s seasons as they come. Without knowing it, I am trying to play God by determining how, when, where and what I am going to do. And so, as we mature, we find that beneath the turbulence of daily living, there is a longer, slower rhythm and timing to life. If we listen and catch our breath, we can come into a firmer union with that aspect of creation. When we do, we gain assurance, peace and the strength to recognize that God’s timing is better than our own, and it always serves our well-being. In this state of existence, the world does not control our daily lives. We abide in Him, He abides in us, and others notice it. Here we can ask what we want, and it will be granted to us.

It matters little whether we have volunteered for the transition that we are swimming through or whether we were forced into it. It is in God and His spiritual atmosphere that we live and move and have our being. He alone sets the stage for the purpose of our lives. With purposeful intent, He placed us here on this planet. He perfectly timed our existence for this very hour.

GOD’S GUIDANCE
God’s Spirit runs through His children and is an inner river that is accessible at any time. We are constantly guided by that Spirit, and that inner Voice gives us focus and knowledge about the circumstances and situations we find ourselves in. It is during the turbulence of transition that we must actively, and passionately, stir ourselves to seek deeper meaning, higher perceptions and fullness of life in Him. It is here in transitional states that we grow in Him in leaps and bounds, more than we might have been able to grow in the past 10 years. We often learn more from 10 days of agony than 10 years of contentment.

Finally, when we experience a greater and “fiercer” transition, perhaps one that lasts longer than any other has, we can be sure of one thing — career changes are in store. By career changes, I do not necessarily mean changing types of employment, but that what is happening is meant to change the way we approach and perceive all matters of life. To those who are children of the Most High, life perception changes will always result in promotion, financial increase, deeper relationships and/or an abiding peace that all is well in God’s hand.

God does not trumpet when we are about to make these important life decisions. Why? because, He wants those decisions to be made from the fruit of our heart toward Him. The closer we are to Him, the better the fruit and the clearer the decision. Truly as we commit our ways to Him, our thoughts are established and through those thoughts the future becomes far brighter.

In my times of transition, I have found that it is great to have an end to journey toward, but in retrospect, it is actually the journey that matters in the end.

We know delight has been found when we look back and with deep heart felt passion, look God in the eyes and say, “The price was worth it.”

In my next post I’ll start to write on the Three Phases of the Dark Night of … .

Blessings,
John Paul

Sometimes, transition requires us to go someplace or do something so undefined that we are clueless to the next step we are to take. Much like Abraham in Genesis we have to go someplace that we don’t know. In the midst of the journey, it is easy to feel lost and perhaps alone. Once in a while we know what the end goal might be, but we don’t know where it is or how to get there. Just imagine that God told you to pack your bags, gather your belongings and go — just go.

We might be justified in asking, “Where do I go?” But God simply replies, “Go!” So we press again, “Okay, but at least tell me what direction to go. North, south, east or west?” Again God simply says, “Go!” We answer, “O Lord, please tell me so at least I can tell my family where we are going and my friends won’t think I loony.” Once again we hear that heavenly voice: “They’re going to think that no matter what you tell them — go!”

ABRAHAM’S JOURNEY: FINDING YOUR PROMISED LAND
Little do we know how important that first step of faith is. One day, we will transition from being dependent on others to being the leader of others, all because of this first step. But we don’t know that today. We just know that we want to obey God, and He said to GO! So we do it.

However, how do we balance obedience and responsibility? We have a family and responsibilities. Abraham even had livestock that somehow must be fed. Since we don’t know the path, we end up doing as Abraham did and let the livestock follow the grass trail — we simply try to handle each day as it comes. We don’t know the destination or how to get there, so every day the flock moves slowly, in seemingly random ways.

Months go by like this; the herd meanders from one pasture to the next, and we have not heard from God in a long time. In fact He has not spoken since we heard Him say, “GO.” Our friends are now looking at us with querying eyes, and even we are wondering, Was it just a dream?

To make matters worse, some family members lose faith in us and our ability to hear God speak. Some of those in our charge decide they can do better by themselves and run off to find their own destiny, as Lot did. In many ways, we don’t blame them, because the reality is we still don’t know where we are going! At least we’re surviving, and the grass trail before us continues to be plentiful.

A few more weeks go by, and we are pretty much at the lowest point of our journey. We start to tell our family that we’re rethinking our options, weighing their advice, waiting on God — but, deep inside, we are trying to decide if this is worth it. In a conundrum, we climb one, last mountain to look for the next pasture and tired on multiple levels we slump on a boulder to rest — exhausted, weary and oppressed. What are we going to do?

Then it happens. Without warning, we hear His voice again. “Lift your eyes up — now! Look to the north, south, east and west! All the land you see is yours. This is the land to which I told you to go. I will bless you here. Not only that, but I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. And all your descendants will inherit this land.”

Overcome with emotion, our eyes fill with tears, and we collapse on the boulder and openly weep. We now understand that He had been guiding us all the time — but why didn’t it seem like it?

This is the agony and the awe of transition. We know we are called to do something, but we are totally incapable of getting ourselves there. Sometimes it seems even the beasts of the field know more than we do. Yet, we eventually arrive at our destinies. Looking back, we see God’s hand was quite active, but we recognized little of it while on the journey.

THE THREE-PART SECRET OF TRANSITION
Herein lies the secret to transition that Abraham discovered. This is why God changed Abram’s name. All three parts of this secret synergize with one another and must be consummated before we will achieve God’s purpose for our lives. Without the three parts in place, our understanding will not be complete and our destinies will not be reached.

Part One
The first part of the secret is simply this: Where God guides He provides. In Abraham’s case, God grew the grass that the livestock ate. God knew that the livestock would follow the food source and that Abraham would follow his livestock to the Promised Land.

Part Two
The second part of the secret is this: What God births He protects. This allows us to know that beyond a shadow of doubt, God has directed us to do what we are doing. We will need this confidence and this faith on multiple occasions before we reach the end of the journey. If the Lord told us to go, we will get there.

Part Three
Finally, the last part is realizing that if we expect God to guide only through the overt and the obvious, we will be blind to most of His guidance. God wanted Abraham to know that all of creation will be used by God to help him on his journey. As the apostle Paul wrote, “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen” (2 Corinthians 4:18). In other words, God causes the grass to grow even when we do not hear Him speaking; He leads even when we don’t realize we’re being led. (Can I hear an amen?)

When grasped, and trusted, these three facets of the Secret of Transition will become huge anchors that will allow many other divine elements to come to light and help you reach the purpose for which God created you – here lies the zenith of delight.

There’s more on delight in the next post.

Blessings,
John Paul

Perhaps one of the ways to understand the third phase of transition is to understand the passage of Scripture where Jesus uses the analogy of the branches, the grapes, and the effect that pruning has on fruit production (John 15).

The whole idea of our lives on Earth is fruit production in all its forms. It is through fruit production that the Father is glorified (vs. 8). The way branches produce more fruit is through pruning and you guessed it – pruning is TRANSITION! The old is loped off or removed and the new is yet to come.

We may have been fruitful in our old life, career, house, ministry or any other endeavor we were involved in, but branches without the transition of pruning have decreasing yields of fruit. So the Father wants more fruit and rewards those who produce fruit with “Crowns”, but that is another story. Anyway, fruit is the idea, and I mean lots and lots of it! Why? Well let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. One step at a time, line upon line.

So how does desire, discipline and delight equate to grapes and pruning? Easy, you see transition begins right where we are - whack, we feel the uncomfortable sting of the vine dresser’s pruning shear. Cut to the nub, we are stuck where we are and hope something is coming. Slowly we begin to grow and we wonder what is going on. Weren’t we to move on? Why are we still here? Grapes may now begin to bud and even ripen. But, to our surprise, we will soon find this is simply the preparation for Transition.

DESIRE
Desire is displayed when the grapes are picked. You see the goal is not the grapes after all, it’s the taste, actually it is something far more precious than that. It’s Desire that stimulates our wanting to pick the grapes in hope of something fine and robust coming. It is desire for something more.

DISCIPLINE
The next thing we know we are thrown into a vat, a colander, or a wine press and the pressure begins. This is discipline and here we want with all our heart to escape from that which seems to be crushing the very life out of us. We seem to be losing the identity of our fruit. The grapes we worked so hard to produce, now have no identity of their own. And there in is the secret … God is more into wine than grapes!

DELIGHT
Delight comes in the drinking of the wine. Wine is not only the result of a loss of identity, it is the result of fermentation and that comes only after a very “smelly” time of hiddenness. We are not to be drunk or proud of our fermentation process as if this makes us more valuable, but with sober moderation we are to become the best wine in the feast! This is spiritual life at its best. It is the wine of the Passover, where God’s hand passes over us; a place where we become impervious to the attack of the evil one.

If we do not grasp hold of transition and embrace it, we are left a little more vulnerable to attack, and a little less confident of the nearness of God’s hand. We become a little dimmer light, and we lose a little of the salty savor that so spices up and preserves the world.

Few sights are as pitiful as branches that resist transition and are struggling to grow larger rather than to produce more fruit. The only thing worse is to see someone content to be “mash” in the bottom of the colander rather than wine in the glass. These are those who are content with the old wine for it is good enough.

We’ll talk more of the Delight of Transition in the next post.

Blessings,
John Paul