possession - to occupy (be driving out previous tenants and possessing in their place); by implication to seize; to rob, to inherit, also to expel
I have spent the last year in the Pentateuch with my Boothmakers and we have been studying the life of Moses and the journey of the nation of Israel. While my tiny house in Saraland, Alabama is no promised land, we have been commanded to take possession of it. When God called the Israelites to take the Promised Land, He did not ask them to merely live there and inhabit it for a while. He wanted them to take it away from the enemy's control, to redeem it and use it for His glory! The last few weeks have felt this way for me with our little house. While we do have a roof over our heads and all the other basic necessities, this house is meant to be more than a place to endure for a few years until something new comes along. Our command here is to possess it! We are to be offensive in seizing this property, sending out the enemy and taking it from his control. We are to redeem it and make it a holy place for the Spirit to freely dwell.
On the surface level, this has been a fairly difficult task, seeing as nearly all of our belongings are still in another state. For you wives out there, I know you understand. There is a nesting instinct that God gives us to make our homes a haven for our families. My sweet Jesus has seen my nesting struggle with only an air mattress and card table to work with and has sent me off on a new project this week...decorating Haley's room. Strangely, because she got a "big girl bed" when we moved, she has more furniture at the moment than the rest of the house. This past weekend I worked with my mom to pick out fabric for curtains and brainstorm some other ideas. Yesterday I painted the letters of her name for her wall and today I painted circles on the walls to match a fabric we picked out. Now, for those of you who don't know me...I'm an accountant, not an artist. In fact, I have always considered myself in serious lack of creativity and artistic ability. Even if I were to come up with some fun idea, I wouldn't have the artsy instincts to pull it off, it would look ridiculous. This being said, God gave me a Bezalel day today! (Again, from the world of Moses...Bezalel was given supernatural ability to envision and construct the holy objects for the tabernacle in the wilderness...cool story, check it out...Exodus 35:30-35) Knowing that I do not possess the artistic ability to paint, my Jesus gave me the creativity to envision and ability to execute some really cute circles on the walls of my baby girl's bedroom. I know this may seem silly, but it has done wonders in making this house our possession. I can start to envision our lives progressing here...Haley growing up, bringing home a new baby, learning about ministry, and sharing my Jesus with my neighbors. It is these visions that are making this house my possession. We have taken it back from Satan's control and are turning it into a home and a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit.
Operation Cookie Dropoff - Phase 4So, months ago my Jesus gave me 5 houses on our street that I am suppose to initiate relationships with. Tonight I delivered cookies to house number 4. The husband was home, but I didn't meet the wife. Their front lawn boasts scripture and University of Alabama paraphernalia. The scripture got me excited and I decided to excuse the UA stuff. (For those of you outside the state borders, the Alabama/Auburn rivalry is intense and all state residents are required to pick a side...we happen to be loyal Auburn fans.) This gentleman was very nice and seemed genuinely interested in our story. He shared openly about his love for the Lord and I am looking forward to getting to know this family better. Like every other neighbor we've met, he had a few stories about the previous owners of our house, none of which cast them in a nice light. Just another reminder that Satan no longer has authority over this property and that we are on the offensive to take the rest of this neighborhood back for Jesus!
Now, let me tell you how smart my Jesus is...five houses, right? The two on either side of us, the one directly across the street, one two houses down on the corner and the last is on the corner of the next street on the other side. I didn't think much of this until we moved in, but there is a house between the one across the street and the one I visited tonight. I wondered why I wasn't suppose to go there, and figured I'd "pick it up" after I finished my specific five. I didn't want to leave anybody out and that seems odd given that it's in the middle of the others. Well, come to find out...the guy that owns the house on the corner that I met tonight, also owns the one next to him...the one not on my list. His sister-in-law used to live there, but as of February of this year, that house is vacant! Haha!! No wonder Jesus left that one off my list! Sheesh! When will I learn to follow directions? He is so in control and so has a plan. I'm curious about the last house on my list and will be anxious to share it with you next week. Until then, keep chasing after Him...He's all good!
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