The two most fulfilling seasons of my life have been ones of intense, focused time in the secret place. The Lord called the first one “Shiloh,” and it was all about worship. My friend and spiritual leader, Aaron Evans, gave me freedom in the Spirit and in the natural to do this. He looked at me and said, “Your job is to minister to the Lord.” I took my job very seriously, awakening long before the dawn to pray and to spend most of every day anointing His feet with my worship. The second season came years later, when the Father told me I was behind schedule and sent me to what He called my “summer school.” Again, I woke long before the dawn and was tutored by Him and His 7 Spirits in the heavenly realm.
As both of these seasons shifted for various reasons, I grieved, trying to return to a classroom that eluded me. In retrospect, I now see that these seasons were bedchambers, places of intimacy in which precious seeds were sown in my spiritual womb. I also see that the seasons following them were seasons of birthing, producing exponential fruit, and nurturing those things that had been birthed.
There is a circular rhythm to creation and to the ways of God, a gentle, dancing rhythm that is gracefully ordered without being rigid. In nature, we see spring, summer, fall and winter dancing together, creating a tapestry. The same is true of spiritual seasons. When we understand this, we can lean into and can even enjoy the objectives of each season, even if that goal is multiplied fruit by way of pruning.
We never leave true spiritual deposits behind, even when the subsequent birthing leads us into another emphasis. But we must remember that, without the intimacy of the bedchamber, anything birthed in life or ministry is illegitimate. Spiritual gifts are given “without repentance,” and can operate even when grieving Holy Spirit. Human charisma has, throughout history, moved people, created atmospheres, and changed society. But as we see with charismatic figures like Adolph Hitler, history reveals fruit that those living inside the story may be unable to see. No one is above being deceived, except in the place of intimacy, where He reveals and heals our heart, where we lay our head on His chest, listen to His heartbeat, ask Him our questions, listen for His answers and echo His slightest whispers, where we are trusted with His secrets… where we are His friends.
If ministry or business or life takes the place of the secret place, the fruit that is born will be of the flesh not the Spirit. Nothing of true or lasting value will emerge. Only in the bedchamber of His heart will He sow seeds of eternity that will birth something pure into the wineskin of time and space. If you struggle with intimacy with God because of wounding in your soul, don’t despair. Don’t try to fill that void with ministry or the applause of man. Just keep showing up by faith in His presence, knowing that He is faithful to right every wrong, heal every wound, fill every void, and birth something glorious through you.
Really, it is an amazing time to be alive!
Virginia