Let it Dawn on You!

What a Sunday! I know I say that a lot but truly God began a great work yesterday in the NLC. I pray that you were touched and that this week you take time get to know who you are in Jesus, that you are part of the body of Christ, you are prophetic, you are a priest, and a conquering king.

I shared a word that the Lord layed on my heart yesterday morning while I was doing my devotions. It comes from Acts 12:1-12:
1It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. 3When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 4After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover. 5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him. 6The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists. 8Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him. 9Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him. 11Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating." 12When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.

An angel of the Lord came and set Peter free from imprisonment. The chains fell off, they walked past the guards, and the iron gates opened by themselves so that they could get out. Yet Peter wasn't free until it dawned on him what had just happen. For awhile he thought he was dreaming. Too many in the church today think they are just dreaming. God is removing chains but we are not walking in the freedom that He is giving us. We are sleep walking thinking dreaming about what it will be like to be free. It is time that we wake up to realize what God has done through His Son Jesus. We are free! Free to be who God created us to be. Free to succeed and fail. Free to listen and hear the voice of God. The law of sin and death has no power over us because we have been redeemed by the shed blood of Jesus. We are riding on a ribbon of never ending grace. Grace that does not give us the right to deliberately go out and sin but grace that let's us pursue God and succeed and fail in this walk. It's how we continue to grow.

I want us to realize that it is time to wake up and know the freedom that is truly ours. It is not a dream. Until we learn, as the people of God, what freedom truly is, what difference are we going to make in a world that is bound by sin and death? I pray for the release of new life, healing, and the gifts of the Spirit in your life, that you may be whole in Jesus' name and know it beyond a shadow of a doubt.