Understanding

Please don’t take this casually as I want you to read it as though it were an epistle to you. There are many things we laugh and share about, but this is an exception to that. Also I know that you speed read, but this is not what you must speed read, because there is a life form you must encounter herein. You must take your time to read this and do so carefully.

The more I grow, I get to put away childish thoughts about life and what God would have us understand. I am coming to see some deep things about the life we are privileged to live and that there is so much more to it that we cannot begin to imagine the fullness to which we can experience it.

This is what I want to share with you because you are entitled to a wonderful life on earth. A vital truth you must understand is that God is not a respecter of persons. Everyone who cares to go on a search and discover things about God would encounter amazing things and experience an excellent life. Even though two people are married, it’s not a guarantee that they both would have the same God given experiences. So it is possible for a wife to be accessing some truths in God while the husband lags behind. The point is that such spiritual truths that bear directly on our earthly lives cannot be taught exactly. They are only accessed by understanding.

Now what I want for you is to have a great life, without struggling with the hindrances that makes men live unfulfilled lives. You must start asking God questions that border on a stress-free life. This is the life that Jesus came to introduce; the Kingdom life. In that kind of living, He said “Come unto me all ye who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” This is the same rest Paul was trying to explain to the Hebrews in Heb. 4. However many professed Christians would never enter into this rest and cease from their own labour because they lack understanding. So Psalm 82: 6 says “Ye are gods and the children of the most high, but you will die like men.” Why? A lack of understanding.

What therefore is the meaning of “Understanding” in this context? Simply put, IT IS SEEING A THING AS GOD SEES IT. If we fail to see
what God is saying, then we will fall short of His intention for us. Most times we only hear what God says, but we must advance from there to see what he is saying. Sounds like a contradiction? The point is that spiritual issues are always painted in pictures. This is one of the primary reason Jesus spoke a lot in parables, which were spiritual pictures of divine truth to guide us into how to live to the utmost. Many miss it because they are trying to hear Him rather than see His words. Prophet Habbakuk would put it this way “I would stand upon my watch to SEE what He is SAYS to me”. Understanding is the capacity to see what God says; seeing what He is seeing about what He says.

Understanding is achieved by meditation. Meditation is a continuous rumination over God’s word until the picture of the word appears to you. Most people assume meditation is merely thinking about what you just read for a few minutes. This is a fallacy; meditation requires a continuous staying on the word you have received until something tangible breaks forth within you that moves you into practical action. This is why God had to warn Joshua that the book of the law must not depart from him….he must meditate “day and night” and “observe to do”. This is because the land Joshua was going into was a land that could swallow up its inhabitants, just as the world today is swallowing up even the Christians. We already have mostly been lured into the worlds’ way of doing things. But staying on the word by meditation is what brings understanding, and understanding in turn changes the life of a man.

Let me put it more clearly. If you suddenly knew that your dad owned the whole of Walmart or Microsoft, your attitude to life would suddenly change. Many things that were fears would suddenly dissipate. You wouldn’t have to struggle to change your mindset, the fact that you have now seen that your dad is so wealthy is enough reason why you have a sudden change in attitude. This is the same effect that understanding brings. This is why scripture would say: “…in all thy getting get understanding”, Prov. 4:7. I am taking my time to do this exposition because I want you to enjoy the fullness of God. This is my desire for you because I desire it most for myself.

Excerpts from a letter to my wife when we were courting…