The Lord
continues to draw us, dear Heartdwellers. He is hungry for our
company and is again showing us the way to His heart.
You
see, by denying yourself the little things, you draw closer to the
delights of Heaven. It only takes a little effort, Clare, a little
agreement. And the sweetness of My presence and our love is filled
with the fresh fragrance of devotion.
"I am not an easy catch. My royal dignity does not allow for Me to be an easy catch. Rather, you must reach up and out of yourselves as you seek My fellowship and the sweetness of My presence.\
"What price are you willing to pay, My beloved ones? What are you willing to deny yourself for Me? The rich young ruler had done all the law commanded, but his heart was still with his possessions and future inheritance. The idea of disappointing his father was also something he could not even fathom...a slap in the face for his father's years of planning and toil. Yes, relatives and security will keep you from your highest calling if you allow them to.
"I called him, but fear of the unknown and being stripped naked of all human dignity, to become an itinerant disciple of a questionable teacher, looked down upon by the scribes and Pharisees...well, that was just too much. All in one fell swoop, he would lose his family, who would call him a madman and be condemned by the highly respected and corrupt Pharisees. Overnight he would go from riches to rags. A man with a future to a man of shame. A man of means levelled to the status of a common beggar. Oh no, he could not possibly wear that crown of scorns that all My apostles were offered.
"Truly, it's not the poverty alone that causes a soul to refuse My invitation. It is the stigma of poverty and the way you are looked upon daily when you reduce yourself to the status of a beggar and live solely on alms given even by women. So many find their self-worth in their possessions. When those are stripped, they feel that even their dignity has been stripped.
"As I have told you many times before, no man is worth more than the price I paid on Calvary for them. Each and every one cost Me the very life's blood of My body. Therefore, the rich and the poor are of equal value in My Kingdom. This is something that does not become apparent to most until after they die, and then they see their nakedness before Me.
"Accumulations of wealth, status and accomplishment fade like the morning mist and what is left is the stark reality, 'What did you do for others? Did you learn how to give? Did you learn how to love?' It is a very difficult decision to leave the world to follow Me, so many ramifications. My disciples were head-over-heels in love with Me - they made that choice without hesitation.
"Clare struggled over this decision. She missed My first call. But I gave her a dream in which I said, 'I will call again.' And the second time she decided for Me. The rewards were literally out of this world, but the scorn and contempt that accompanied it was very much like what My disciples endured as they set out after My ascension."
"And
because you emptied yourself, Clare, I filled you to overflowing. But
it cost you, didn't it?"
"I
am here for the taking. Not all are called out of society into a
radical Christian life, but all are called to be radical lovers of Me
and forsake themselves in all things. Those who would keep their
lives, will lose them, but those who give up their lives for Me shall
indeed find them.
This is an excerpt. Please listen to the video.
Source: heartdwellers
