I believe we are in a time where the Lord is wanting to change mindsets, to remove some of the coverings that have been laid on the original foundations, that being Christ alone, and to replace with new ways of thinking that lead us to complete freedom in Christ and the reason why he died. (Gal 5:1 “It is for freedom that Christ has set you free”).
I believe He is wanting to remove the dead wood or branches in our lives that are not bearing fruit, that he is wanting us to leave behind some things in our lives so that we can step into the new, to allow the new growth to come, the new things that he has for us. John 15:1-2 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. (The whole of John 15 is amazing to read and bring context so if you have time give it a read)
While we were in Picton this is very much what the Lord was saying to the people there, but I believe it is what the Lord is doing with quite a number of us.
Some of the things to be left behind were past hurts, hurts from the church, scars that people have received at the hand of their brothers in Christ, old ways of thinking, “I’ve been there and done that”. Whatever it is, the Lord is wanting us to let go of things and allow the new growth that he would bring, to come.
The other word that was coming is that we are to walk as children of the light.
In 1 John 1:5 it is “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”
I was reminded of a picture I had whilst in China and I was dancing in the fields with flowers all around and quite happy dancing there, but just a little further over it was dark and I didn’t want to dance there, I was afraid. I was quite happy dancing in the safe place but where it was dark I didn’t want to go.
But I knew in that picture that the Lord wanted to teach me and to lead me to dance in the dark – knowing that we are to be the light in the darkness, not just dancing in the light.
While sitting in Picton looking over the beautiful scenery I saw a rabbit come out from behind some bushes, put his ears up and listen for danger. When he saw/heard that it was safe, he ventured out and I believe this was a picture that the Lord was showing me, that we are a bit like rabbits – we will come out on the grass when it is safe, but the moment it becomes a little noisy or scary we will take off back to the bushes or the safe place in our lives.
And that too I believe is what he is wanting to teach us in, retrain our mindsets and be willing to learn how to dance in the darkness. To be the people of God who God has called us each to be, not just in the safe places – in the church, with our friends, but in the scary places – to those who perhaps may have something against us, in our workplaces, in those places that are out of our comfort zone.
For each one of us is to be the light in the darkness. We are called to be the city on a hill, we are called not to hide our light under a bushel and so I believe the Lord is wanting to teach us how to dance in the dark knowing that in Him we are hidden under the shelter of his wing and that in Him no harm can befall us that is outside of his will, to come into a place of trust in the Lord where no matter what man may say or do to us, we can still dance in the dark and be the children of the light that we are called to be.
So let me encourage you to allow God to cut back some of the past hurts, some of the things that have held us dancing in the safe places, and to allow the new growth that he would do in each one of us, no matter where we are at, to allow the new ways of thinking to be brought, or new ways of seeing things, so that we can be the light in the darkness.
Bless you all! With love - Sarah