I have been walking this walk with the Lord Jesus Christ for just over 13 years, and during that time I have had many highs and lows to do with my faith and how ‘close’ I feel to the Lord. I once had a prophetic word spoken over me by a lovely old lady at a Christian retreat in Wales, who spoke on behalf of the Lord to me with words something like this; “there is ALWAYS more, My son, you can always go higher and deeper, and come closer – it is infinite’.

I have discovered since then that those words certainly seem to ring true, for my relationship with the Lord has metamorphed and deepened in many ways over the years. For example, my knowledge of His word has expanded my soul and challenged my mind in a positive way; and then there’s me gradually gaining more and more experience with the supernatural (both holy and unholy); also, my understanding of the need for a continual personal deliverance has matured, which is linked to a deeper genuine repentance from me as I get greater revelation of sin, which is growing and greatly maturing me in ways I could not have foreseen when I first started to follow Christ. There are so many other ways that I’ve changed for the better too, such as my temper calming down as I learn to love others better, or my merciful temperament becoming more and more graceful with the more I learn of the grace of Christ, as I continue to contemplate the spiritual implications of His cross… and there are many other things the Lord has done to my character too, which I will always applaud and have a lot of deep thanks to Him for!

Significantly, my attitude over certain situations has also changed for the much better, for I am now regenerated to a heavenly mindset, having put into practice ‘taking every thought for Christ’ to the best of my ability. Whereas maybe once I would have been nervous or angry, now those attitudes have been replaced by an underlying faithful bedrock of peace or joy, and a real love for all people, even when I perhaps feel wounded by them; I consider this spiritual success in whatever negative situation one may be a part of. I’m certain that my evolving attitudes will continue to be further tested, perhaps even to breaking point, but nevertheless, going deeper and deeper with the Lord has proven to be a foundation of great strength in places in my soul that had no strength before I gave my life to Him. For example, ONLY the Lord can inspire such a forgiving and sympathetic love for even our enemies, for even those who want to torturously murder us or abuse us in some way, for such love can only come from the direct inspiration of His Spirit, who says ‘Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they are doing’. It is that very relationship dynamic with His Spirit that determines our godly future steps, and helps us to walk out biblical expectations of required holy behaviours, for without His direct intervention in this way, such attitudes are completely impossible for a human being, who (as we know, as believers) tend towards darkness and evil. This should be part of our motive in seeking the Lord with all of our heart, soul and mind, that we should strive to be like HIM in every way, and do what HE would do in any given situation, and NOT be like or do what comes all too naturally to us. Unless we know Him personally on a day to day level, we will simply will miss it and react out of our sinful flesh, which always proves to finish badly in the end.

Dear friends, this is where so many of the new age teachers get things so, so wrong! Doctrines such as the law of attraction, or ‘word of faith’ actions like ‘speaking’ or writing things into existence (which in witchcraft is called ‘words of affirmation’, which is a type of casting a spell) are entirely based on selfishness, ironically in the name of ‘losing ego’ and ‘being in the now’ or ‘working with the universe’. It is always under the guise of positivity, and such doctrines would make one focus directly on themselves ALL the time, rather than being outwardly looking to others, even forgiving and actively seeking blessings for those who would want to harm us or our loved ones. It is actually a clever type of false holiness that they preach, because it subtly makes ourselves the centre of the universe, rather than the true solipsist, who is the Jewish Messiah – just what the devil would want, right? When all things around you seem to revolve around yourself, you can know you have stepped out of line; yet in truth many (even believers) still seek these personal ‘blessings from the universe’, and to be quite honest, they tend to GET them! But such ‘men of flesh’ don’t understand that much of the time, it’s actually a satanic blessing, to keep them away from a life changing understanding of sin and repentance. Remember that the devil offered all the nations of the world (and everything in them) to Jesus, if He would just bow down and worship him. That promise is very much still alive for us today, and the devil makes good on it, believe me. We have to understand that all worldly things actually belong to the devil to give, and he really will give them if it means you’ll stay away from actual holiness.

Contrary to that, the Lord Jesus Christ promises His followers curses, hatred and persecution from the world; He warns us that we must ‘pick up our OWN crosses’ and deny ourselves in order to follow Him. Is the Christian glass half empty, therefore? Well, from the point of view of the flesh, there’s actually nothing in the glass at all, not even half way! Hence the ridicule we get, I suppose. Take a minute to observe the new age teachers, who seem to have everything they asked for and preach about; money, status, fame, ‘wisdom’, and general material, even perhaps ‘spiritual’ blessing. Maybe they even have a type of ‘peace’, like that spoken of by the Buddha. Their ‘prayers’ to the universe certainly seem to get answered! Right? They’ve won life, and have attained the authority to preach it to others, haven’t they? They have all that a human being could want on this earth, and their lives prove it, don’t they? Indeed, as they claim to be, they might even be your path to spiritually evolving to the next consciousness (ironically called ‘Christ consciousness’)! When viewed from their perspective, the way of the real Christ seems backwards and even evil, and something to be left behind as redundant and useless to ‘true’ spiritual progression.

Going deeper and getting closer to the Lord personally has shown me many things. I have learned that I cannot invoke true peace in any way, for it is HIS gift to give whenever He feels like it; I have learned that material possessions hold no lasting joy for me, and that the only real joy I can ever get out of them is to use them for the glory of Jesus and the furtherance of His kingdom. I have learned that no other being can give me what I’m REALLY looking for; not a mother, wife or child can give me what I’m seeking. When one truly knows the presence of the Lord, all human effort falls light years short. There is simply nothing to compare to Him. Friend, if you don’t know Him like this, humble yourself, seek deeper, whatever the cost… there is always more, and it is worth it. I can vouch for it. He is totally worthy. Nothing the new agers preach can even come close, believe me; what they offer is used toilet paper in comparison. Laughable! Humans can never understand true love until they’ve knelt at the cross in submission to Him, and even then, it’s a lifetime of learning from there. We all yearn to fill that deep void with SOMEthing, yet often fail to realise that the only one who can fill ANYthing is the Lord.

In a worldly sense, the glass of the born again Christian is indeed half empty, for there will be many struggles in this earthly life that we must face, much of the time bravely and submissively, for the Lord is sovereign over everything (including refinement) and yet our reaction to any situation we get put through counts for eternity. At the very least, one can be sure that there is much hardship, pain and suffering ahead of all of us who want to walk the holy path to eternal life. Contrary to the opinions of the prosperity gospel preachers, mansions and private jets are just another distraction from a true relationship with the Lord, who values great faith that yet manifests in a completely different way to material gain, namely the spiritual fruits of salvation and His spiritual gifts of repentance, healing and deliverance. But actually, spiritually speaking, the glass for the maturing Christian is full to overflowing, for not only do we see the manifestations of His Spirit leading us on a completely different level to the ‘average Joe’, but we HAVE Him; He is in us, and we in Him; we are the branches, sucking in the nutrients from the Vine, being filled to the brim with life. His Father, the Gardener, prunes and shapes the branches on the Vine for them to produce the most bounteous fruit possible; we in turn then glorify the Lord, and please Him with our obedience to His will. Faith produces such obedience. Every branch that does not produce faithful fruit is eventually cut off like dead wood, to be burned on a bonfire at a later date. The dead branch died because it ceased to receive from the Vine, and is therefore an unnecessary burden on the whole plant. But the branch that receives the life giving sap from the Vine is ‘plugged’ into the rest of the Vine, overflowing with health and radiance that benefits the whole plant.

The world can offer many things. People congregate and unite over many of those things. But the world can never give us the peace we all so desperately seek. We tend to think that finding a spouse, having a child, getting a pet, getting a better car or house, a good party, better sex, better food, and a whole host of ‘stuff’ can actually give us what we really seek, and yet we get desperate when we discover that those things are not the answer. At least, we should do; it always amazes me that people can still be content with just those things! It bamboozles me, in fact. I’d personally give it all up just for even one more touch of His Spirit, the living water I thirst for (not that I have much to give in that way, though). It makes me truly sad that most people on earth remain satisfied with dirty water that does not quench their thirst, and with stale bread that does not fulfil their hunger. Many are even satisfied with stolen stale bread and dirty water, which are cursed on top of that! There is a deep shroud of darkness that hangs heavily over the eyes of the human race, like a wet blanket smothering and chilling those who are already dying from hypothermia. It brings me pain that friends and even family members suffer so, yet remain oblivious to it in their deceived delirium. Nevertheless, I find the source of my own joy is otherworldly, from a different dimension, and is not reliant on other human beings, or the situations they create. The fact that I am prepared by the Lord Himself to face great struggles in this earthly life actually gives me rest in my soul, for I am very aware that we must all walk through the valley of the shadow of Death.

Jesus calls Himself the ‘Light’ in the darkness; recognition of this is true enlightenment of the soul. Nothing the world or even the universe can give will ever satisfy; only He Himself can do that. Therefore, I wholeheartedly recommend for us all to pour EVERYTHING into Him and His kingdom, for the end thereof are the greatest of riches, beyond our wildest imaginations. I personally intend to do my best to fulfill that goal of seeking Him ever deeper and closer, and I hope to see all those similar souls there with me on the other side, in the place where all those wonderful biblical promises have been seen to come true, and we know, as we ourselves are truly known.