The Bride's Heart
Five years ago I had an encounter with the Lord where I saw Him knock on the door of His Bride's heart. When she opened it to answer Him, He saw that it was too cluttered to come in. To my surprise, her heart wasn't cluttered with carnal things but rather with what we'd call "spiritual things." There were books, binders, papers, and journals filled with teaching notes and materials. There were many calendars that spanned years of different days marked with meetings, conferences, etc. There were spiritual tools such as flags, shofars, prayer shawls, and more. His Bride was surrounded by spiritual things, but there was no room left for Jesus to enter.
In this visionary encounter, I saw the Lord ask her if she was willing to make room for Him, and she eagerly responded with her "yes."
She asked Him, "What do You want me to remove to make room for You to enter?"
He answered her by saying, "Remove it all."
She was baffled by this, because all of these things were good, but her many possessions about Him had left no room for Him. It took a long time to clear it all, for these things had deep attachments within her heart and mind. When the process was done, she stood in the empty room (of her heart) and felt a chill and sense of loss, because she had become so accustomed to being surrounded by all of the things that represented her spiritual life.
Welcoming Him In
Then she looked at the door where Jesus was waiting, and she asked Him to come in. He entered, bringing with Him a small wooden table, two chairs, a cup of wine, and some unleavened bread. He said, "This is all you need." He placed the cup and the bread on the small table, then proceeded to sit in a chair at the table. As He sat down, He invited her to join Him. (Photo via Unsplash)
That was the end of the visionary encounter, but it was the beginning of a process of God clearing out my heart. It needed to be emptied of all the things that had cluttered it so that He could come in and commune with me.
Clutter Is a Robber
Though I believe that the vision was for more than just me, I had to first allow the Lord to do it in me. I had no idea how cluttered my heart had become. And I had no idea how much it was robbing from me. It has been five years of being emptied, five years of removing one thing after another, five years of realizing that my identity was attached to many of these "things"—true things, but still just things. All of the clutter had the potential of becoming idols, because they were displacing Him for things that made me feel like a good Christian. The many things about Him could not fill what only He could fill.
In my vision, Jesus was not upset about His Bride's longing to know Him more or to be involved with so many things, but they were taking up room that He was jealous to inhabit. What began as sincerely wanting to know Him and do what was right became more about following a blueprint of what I felt people wanted me to do or possess. For each of us, the clutter for one may be different than for another, but there is an invitation to make room for "Christ in us" (Colossians 1:27) to become what fills our hearts.
This vision isn't intended to tell anyone to throw out all of their Christian materials, because it isn't about that; it is about the state of the Bride's heart. It is speaking of the clutter that has robbed her of the simplicity of pure devotion to Him. For me, it is about understanding that seeking Him first is to put Him first, not putting all the lists of "things to do for Him" first.
I needed to be completely emptied and then allow Christ alone to fill my heart. I needed to return to first love. I especially needed to be emptied of those things that defined my spiritual identity more than Christ Himself and His deep longing to commune with me. (Photo via Piqsels)
Quite honestly, it's been a spiritually hard five years. My mind had a very hard time understanding what the Lord was doing or if it was actually Him doing it. I wrestled more than I've ever wrestled in my life.
Simplicity of Devotion to Christ
Being emptied can feel like loss and going backwards, but His end desire has been to simplify my life by being filled by the truth that comes from the crucifixion and resurrection. I am having to return to the grace by which I was saved, because that is where I began.
"But I am afraid that, even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, your minds may be corrupted and led away from the simplicity of [your sincere and] pure devotion to Christ." (2 Corinthians 11:3 AMP)
This is one of the verses that helped to bring me understanding of what was happening and that Jesus was bringing me back to the simplicity of my sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
May we clear the room and allow the simplicity of Christ to bring us back to the place of pure and sincere love and devotion to Him. May it restore in our hearts His deep desire for us. May the truth of the cross and His resurrection that gave us new life burn again in us. And, as He finds room in our hearts, I believe the grace that we once knew will also fill our hearts and bring peace.
Whatever you do, don't miss another ELIJAH LIST email! Subscribe at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Kathi Pelton
Inscribe Ministries
Email:Â jkpelton@sbcglobal.net
Website:Â www.inscribeministries.com
Jeffrey and Kathi Pelton live in Portland, Oregon. Jeffrey is a writer, teacher and book editor. Kathi is an author and prophetic voice to the Church. They walk with nations and individuals to see God's original intent fulfilled. Their ministry, Inscribe Ministries, was founded upon the verse from Habakkuk 2:2 that says, "Then the LORD answered me and said: 'Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.'"
To receive more words like this in YOUR inbox, subscribe FREE to the Elijah List at this link: elijahlist.com/subscribe.
Thank you for making the always-free "ElijahStreams" possible. To partner with us, click here.
Your donations truly help us keep these emails free for you. Donate at:
Find us on:
* Facebook click here
* XAPiT click here
