Bishop Jakes on "Positioning"

"POSITIONING is a matter of strategy, and this strategy requires you to listen to God’s voice! Going off on your own will put you completely out of place and in a prime location for destruction. Heed God’s voice. Without His KNOWLEDGE and wisdom, there’s no way you will ever know where you are supposed to be. Get alone. Get quiet. Now, listen as God reveals to you the POSITION He has for you."

--Bishop T. D. Jakes, today on FBook, November 24, 2012



My Response:

"POSITIONING is a matter of strategy..."

I think, so many times, people tend to believe that, just the first six words here. It is our tendency to think, "Yes, it IS about strategy, and I must discern that strategy..." But when we read on, we realize that the strategy we must adopt is not our own, not even human; rather, the strategy we must discern is the will of God for our lives. I love this quote so much, because it is TRUE WISDOM. Yes, there is a strategy. But it has nothing to do with US, really--other than being a willing and obedient vessel. It's about HIM.

"...and this strategy requires you to listen to God's voice!"

Here is Bishop's real advice on discovering and/or adopting a "positioning strategy": Hear God! Do whatever you have to do to hear what He has to say. His strategy is the only strategy that will truly bring happiness and fulfillment. His strategy is the only one that will be found lasting, effective, eternally impactful. Anything we do on and in our own power will, at some point in time or another, be tossed aside, burned in the fire, marginalized, at best, as a "good intention." God knows what is best for us.

As humans, we don't like to give Him that credit. Not really. I speak all the time about how I, personally!, have trouble giving Him 100% control of my life. And, honestly, I struggle on a daily basis with how much of my life/decisions really is His. (Please...I know the answer. But it's hard for someone like me to acknowledge the fact that He wants to be heard in my lunchtime choices. It's incredible, really! And, if I'm being honest, there are days I have trouble grasping that!) But, and I've said this before...That's why it is important for Shirley Harrod Yandell to "die daily," time and again, however much is necessary so that my heart is available to God in each and every moment of my day--lunch or no lunch.

"Going off on your own will put you completely out of place and in a prime location for destruction."

This is something I don't really struggle with very much, if I'm being honest. I've witnessed too many people do this in my lifetime--and the results are almost always ruinous or "to-be-ruinous." But, many people--certainly many Bible characters!!!--tried to "take matters into their own hands," so to speak, or "force the hand of God." That's a dangerous game to play, a potentially brutal chance to take. But I think that the root of the problem here is, essentially, FEAR. Fear of letting God open the doors ("What if He doesn't?" "What if He forsakes me?") in His own time, even when it doesn't seem to match the "internal schedule" we believe is "right" for us.

But for me? The places God takes us are not places we could even survive on our own. I certainly don't want to march off into the angels/demons territory without Him and His "going before me," through the valley and wilderness ahead. What He calls us to do, when He calls us to do it, what lies ahead, is NOT POSSIBLE to manage without His help, His presence. I can promise you that at this point in my life, I am quite content to WAIT. Because I WILL RESPOND to God's command, when it comes--and I want to listen to Him to be as ready as possible for what lies ahead.

"Heed God’s voice."

When God speaks? We must not only respond, we must obey. To the letter. When it is time, nothing can stop the move of God. Nothing and no one. Whatever He says do, whatever He says say, we must do it. Our lives are depending on it, the lives and well-being of others are depending on it. The generations following us are depending on us to not only HEAR, but DO.

"Without His KNOWLEDGE and wisdom, there’s no way you will ever know where you are supposed to be. Get alone. Get quiet."

I am thinking of Henry David Thoreau's "Where I Lived and What I Lived For" essay, an excerpt from his book/experiment, WALDEN. In it, Thoreau gets away from this life, simplifying everything, to think about this life, what's truly important, what it's really about. What matters. It's important to get away and get rid of our normal, everyday distractions and "voices" so we can better Hear Him. He is speaking. He wishes to speak to us TODAY. But we must be in a position to listen to Him. To take the time to listen.

"Now, listen as God reveals to you the POSITION He has for you."

NOW...Right now, God longs to work in us, speak to us, reveal to us things about His plan, His Word, His direction for our lives--for the lives of all of the people on this planet. Right now, He is speaking.

What would we learn if we could only hear Him?