“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.” John 17:15-19
If you’ve spent any time reading my posts you’ve probably discovered I have had a difficult relationship with my parents. My father, the atheist, and my mother, the rejector of all things “church” have led lives which saw an ever-decreasing circle of family and friends. During the last 10 years or so, my mother set about turning her back on not only me but one of her granddaughters and subsequently her two grandchildren. My dad, a quiet, unassuming man, felt the best way to keep the peace was to follow along. So, one day he told me to stop calling and checking in because each time I said even, “Hello” his world would turn to chaos.
Much of what my mom set about doing was, I believe, due to mental illness as time went on. However, I also came to realize she suffered from a life-long emotional need that was never fully met. She desired love but just could never fully surrender to what that all entailed – time spent together, joy, forgiveness, empathy, giving freely, and even physical contact.
The Bible tells us emphatically to “honor your father and mother.” (Exodus 20:12 & Deuteronomy 5:16). Jesus, in Gethsemane, told His Holy Father that He would suffer an excruciating death in order to do His Father’s will. Well, I spent a lot of time with God over the last 20 years trying to figure out exactly what that meant. I sought to understand what walking in Jesus’ obedient steps would look like in my life.
I may have said in the past that my process of coming to a “good place” with my parents went through all the stages of grief.
- Denial
- Anger
- Bargaining
- Depression
- Acceptance
At some point I realized I was in the midst of this process because I grasped that what was happening was the death of something that God has ordained as good – the parent/child relationship. When I finally stopped working so hard at getting their approval and love, I needed to see what God wanted out of me in terms of “acceptance.” How could I show the love of Christ and glorify Him in my steps?
The LORD, was sanctifying me through a very personal and long-term problem. I knew the acceptance of the situation still meant I needed to obey His Word. That became obvious during COVID and my prayer time. My prayers turned from “please fix them” to “how can I best love these folks that gave me life?” I obeyed when He showed me the way. And even though I was turned away so often, I was no longer hurt because I knew I served Him well.
Last year, the LORD moved this situation into a new realm. I truly believe He saw I was ready for more Kingdom work. On July 11, 2024 a family friend called to tell me my mom had suddenly died from an aortic embolism. My father had called him to get a ride home from the hospital.
As I rushed to my parent’s home to meet my dad, I didn’t know what to think, what to expect. But I knew God had shifted my life and I was ready to embark on whatever new path of sanctification He was taking me.
As I stood next to my father, who sat stunned in our friend’s passenger seat in his driveway, I felt God’s powerful presence leading me to complete forgiveness, compassion and love. I embraced my dad and we cried together. I took a big leap forward that night on my way to Jesus’ desire of holiness in me.
I’ve hopefully set the framework of why we get sanctified and by whom in the last few posts. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to show you some practical ways the Holy Spirit, given through Jesus’ death and resurrection, calls us, speaks to us, guides us, and comforts us as we are being sanctified. Lessons learned over the last few years, especially the dramatic turn of events in my life last year.
We will walk through these 5 potential spiritual growth areas:
- Knowledge
- Trials
- Obedience
- Wisdom
- Stewardship
So, I hope you join me next week as we stride our way into our first topic of knowledge – the way to gain it and use it to bring us closer to our God Almighty.
This week’s question: In absolute honesty, where do you turn to first when you have questions about the Christian faith?
emboldened.net 