Reflections4Life
July 6th, 2014
“Naked”
“And there is no creature hidden from His sight,
but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must
give account.” Hebrews 4:13
Scripture Contemplation: Genesis 2; 3; Ezekiel 16;
Romans 8; Hebrews 4; Revelation 3...
Just the thought of being naked before anyone use to
terrify me. I am not much of an exhibitionist. And I definitely did
not want anyone to see all my “bits & pieces”! I'm laughing
at myself right now, so you can also! It's just something about
exposing yourself that way. To have people seeing every part of you
and making judgments. So not into that! Yet, the Father wants us to
come before Him naked—baring our hearts and souls. Laying
EVERYTHING at His feet—without shame—so that He may cover us.
I declare and decree that this week's Reflections
will be a continued source and encouragement for your heart, mind,
and soul. May you have the courage to come before the Lord naked;
baring your heart and soul to Him. God knows it all, but He desires
for us to come willingly. To, lay our all—no matter how
excruciating or embarrassing—lay it at His feet and trust Him to
take care of us.
Everyday someone is making a judgment as we are exposing
ourselves to the world; whether it is intentional or not. Some of us
are over exposed—people know way too much about us. Whereas, the
people that should know us well, know hardly anything at all.
Each time we open our mouths; every action we take—we
are exposing something about who we are, or who we think we should
be. Some expose themselves to gain attention. For whatever reason,
there is a void in their lives and any kind of attention they can
garner, whether it is positive or negative, is filling a void, but
yet they still feel empty inside, and seek ways to fill it.
I give credit to my husband for opening this line of
dialogue and inspiring today's Reflection about being “naked”.
Our conversation, in short, was about being totally honest with one
another. Sharing our heart and soul; baring our truths—good, bad,
ugly, or indifferent—to one another without the fear of judgment or
offense being taken. But, with the intent to bring healing,
revelation, and an even stronger bond.
He brought up Adam and Even, and how in Genesis they
were naked before one another, and before God without any thought or
shame to their nakedness. In fact, they did not even know they were
naked. They just were. They were being who God ordained them
to be, and they were free. Then sin happened. And the first thing
they did was to cover themselves. As if clothes could cover the
darkness of our hearts, or the shame of our actions. Sin made them
feel exposed, as it does to each and everyone us; causing us to want
to hide, to cover up.
The Father desires for us to come before Him naked. He
wants us to come before Him fully exposing what is in our hearts.
Confessing to Him every thought, fear, plan, question, concern. No
matter what it is, God wants to hear it. And He wants us to be free.
Free to live the life that He has ordained for us, without the fear
of thinking that God will not accept us or love us.
Yes. God already knows it all. The confession; the
baring of our heart and soul is for us. It is for us to be free
again, and to strip the enemy of any power he thinks he has over us.
Coming naked before the Lord and confessing, baring every part of our
heart and soul is not punishment or judgment or condemnation. It is
to free us, and release any hold the enemy may have over us through
guilt and shame.
Romans 8:1-2 (MSG) With
the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved.
Those who enter into Christ’s being-here-for-us no longer have to
live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in
operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has
magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of
brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.
Romans 8:31-35 (MSG) So,
what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose?
If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us,
embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending
his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely
do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of
God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who
died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of
God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is
going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for
us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not
hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not
even the worst sins listed in Scripture...
You have nothing to
lose but everything to gain when you bare all to the Lord. There is
nothing that God has already known or heard, and has not made
provision for. We just
have to trust and believe that what God has and what God will do is
best for us—always.
The shame of their
sinful actions caused Adam and Even to cover themselves. They were
not so much covering their nakedness; but trying to cover their guilt
and shame in having sinned against God. That's where many of us live
today: in a cloak of sin and shame and also of guilt. We are afraid
of someone exposing us, or seeing the truth about who we think
we are, instead of knowing and believing who God says we
are.
With God, we don't
have to be ashamed of who are or what we did. He already knows and
has made a way for us to be free and to change our lives in the
process. We may feel remorse, and make confession, and ask for
forgiveness, but we no longer have to feel condemned when we accept
Christ into our lives.
Yes. There are always
consequences for actions. That is the price of the actions that we
take upon this earth. Yet, even in that, we can still be liberated in
our hearts and minds by laying it all before the Lord, and being
honest with ourselves, with God, and with those in our lives.
Nothing hidden every
stays hidden. Lies always have a way of coming out. We can run from
the truth for a while, but sooner or later it shows up, and wants
payment in full. I always say and believe with my whole heart that
I'd rather be told the truth and be hurt, than to find out a lie and
be devastated. With truth, you can rebuild and there is healing. With
a lie, there is no trust and broken promises and relationships.
Whatever it is that
lies within your heart, and in the recesses of your mind, I implore
you to bare it all before the Lord. Confess it to the Father and be
free from the bondage and manipulation of the enemy. God desires for
us to walk and live and truth, and to receive all that He has
ordained.
I decree that the
spirit of peace and of prosperity has found permanent rest in your
lives. Come naked before the Lord. Allow Him to cover you with His
love and heal your wounds with His touch. Exposing yourself to the
Lord will only bring you strength, healing, and deliverance from the
lies, condemnation, and taunts of the enemy. When you tell the truth,
there is nothing left for the enemy to use against you. You are free.
You are Blessed. Now go...and Be a Blessing!
©2014. Ruthe
McDonald. All Rights Reserved.
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