In the John 3:16 Marketing Network a number of the members have felt the warfare against the goal of the network to make an effort to flood the reading market with excellent, clean, Christ centered literature. Maybe we could see ourselves as one division of the Lord’s army in the process of taking the mountain of media/communications & entertainment!
There are some of us who are spiritually sensitive and burden bearing (taking on a portion of the burden) can sneak up on you. When burdens are not prayed through, or are only partially prayed through, and then left at the foot of Jesus cross, they build up—especially when we have stuff going on in our own lives to distract us! In the process of de-cluttering my living room I opened a book that a friend had given me. I found it insightful and I’d like to share.
“It’s important to realize that the level of personal pain or tension we carry affects what we do with the revelation we receive (about situations or others) and also affects the part of the revelation we focus on. When we are doing well, we find ourselves easily focusing on the heart of God for people. When we are doing poorly, it is tempting to use the same gift of sensing/feeling to figure out who will overwhelm us or is a threat to us. When this dynamic is active, we need to learn that it is not other people who are carrying more bad stuff—it is us! Get prayer, take a break, go on a retreat, let people love on you, deal with your issues, and the world will be a sunny place once again.
Restoring Peace in the Country
When you are dealing with strong personal emotions (whether you know why they are there or not), it often means you need to unhook and head off to somewhere quiet. When you are out in the middle of nowhere, you will find that your sensing/feeling system begins to quiet down and you return to a state of peace. Gradually, the different layers of burdens and spiritual weights you may be carrying begin to wash off.
· Away from all the tension, defilement, and warfare of the
city, the heaviness and tension you are carrying will often
begin to lift off.
· Removed from the people you are ministering to, your gift
of discernment will begin to unhook and you will come to a
place of peace.
· As you retreat from any spiritual warfare going on around
you that is connected to your church, family, or ministry,
the battle will begin to dissipate.
With these things taken care of, you will find it far easier to recognize if what you are experiencing is burden bearing, your gift of discernment being stuck in the “on position,” or warfare and defilement; consequently, you will finally have the opportunity to pray through to peace. As well, you will be able to get a handle on whether your strong emotions are signaling that you just need to recharge or you need to get some prayer ministry to deal with past wounding.
We have an excellent role model in Scripture. Jesus had a personal discipline of going out to quiet places when in the midst of people and ministry. For instance, upon hearing of John the Baptist’s death, Jesus immediately left all the people and went out to a quiet place. “When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself.” (Matt. 14:13)
The Lord was very aware of His own emotional condition, and knew how to detach Himself from others to recharge in “the quiet place.” In fact, we find Jesus instructing His disciples about this very practice: “Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” (Mark 6:31)”[1]
Taking a break is a good idea! If our Lord took a break, we, for sure, need to follow His example and for the very same reasons: Unburden our souls and clear our heads, hearts and spirits so we can hear the Lord, fill up our love tanks and by sensing the heart of God get our next directives!
If you would like an in depth treatment of burden bearing, or as some say “Burden Bearing 101,” see my two books, The Mystery of Spiritual Sensitivity, ISBN 10:0-7684-2592-1, 13978-0-7684-2592-5 and Highly Sensitive, ISBN 10: 0-7684-3260-X, 13: 978-0-7684-3260-2, published by Destiny Image.
(Sorry about the bullet points! I can't seem to fix it!)
[1]Dueck, Murray, Keepers of the Presence, Samuel’s Mantle Publications, Abbottsford, BC, Canada, p. 154. 155, ISBN 978-0-9780174-3-9. Murray’s book is very helpful in regard to “living with the gift,” expounding on some 53 different “filling stations.”
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