Shadow of His promise

God's Promise

God's promises are always so amazing - sometimes I wonder "God you got the wrong girl for this assignment - I'm still trying to maintain a vibrant relationship with you". But just like that, in His love, He continues to show us His will, purpose, and promises for our lives. I've found that the revelation of His promise to us is often to encourage us. To strengthen us. I for one love it when I dream about laying hands on the sick! It infuses so much confidence and faith in me that God has a plan for me in the healing ministry. Do I see anything like it now?? Nope. In fact, I see the opposite - I have 2 health conditions that are termed incurable and I've been trusting God to start His healing with me. But in spite of this, I love, love ALL of God's promises to me.

I'm very sure you do too. You love when ministers of God charge you up "you can raise the dead!"; "you can do A, B, C with God!" - in those moments, you gain clarity, and it feels like strength is infused in your spirit man to move. However, only a few people go on to achieve those things.

What about Shadows?

You must now be wondering if God's promises are so good, what do I mean by "shadows"? Well, I think most people can relate to being scared of shadows as a toddler - not necessarily your own shadow but perhaps other people's shadow creeping up on you lol.

A totally made-up story but imagine little me sitting outside on the porch on a dark evening and someone quietly opens the door behind me (not to scare me) just in an attempt to allow me to savor this beautiful quiet moment. Suddenly, I'm seeing this person's shadow getting bigger and coming closer perhaps even overlapping with my personal space. I'd scream and turn around immediately!

Okay, snap out of your imagination back to reality lol.

One thing you can learn from my "scary" shadow tale is that as you grow older, you know for a fact that the shadow you were afraid of is not actually the person. It's only a "look-alike" of the actual person. So even though the shadow is literally on your arm, no one's actually resting on your arm - the real person is most likely a bit farther than it looks depending on the position of the light source and the actual person.

Anyways some main points include:

- shadows are not equal to the real deal.

- shadows do raise your awareness of something and how close that thing is.

The Shadow of God's Promise

Tieing it all together, God's promises are not the actual thing in and of themself but they raise your awareness of God's plan, purpose, and will for your life. God's promises can also be progressive in nature pointing to how close you're getting to its fulfillment. For example, Joseph's first dream was that his brother's sheaves of grain bowed to his own (Genesis 37:6-7). His second dream was that the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowed to him (Genesis 37:9). First, he saw only his brothers, and next, he saw his entire family. His dreams got bigger and more accurate. In the same way, God's promise to us gets clearer and bigger the closer we get to it.

"Don't assume your revelation of God's promise to be the manifestation of His promise."

Note that at the time, Joseph was not yet a ruler in reality so don't assume your revelation of God's promise to be the manifestation of His promise. DO NOT get complacent on account of God's promise. Don't sit back and say I am already wealthy, I am already the father of many nations, I am already a ruler... Work by faith to obtain the promise. Allow those promises to become a reality by faith and by your works!

Habakkuk 2:2-3

Then the Lord replied:

“Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald[whosoever reads it] may run with it. 3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it[Though he linger, wait for him] will certainly come and will not delay.

Practical Steps to take on God's Promise

Write it down and revisit (review) it as it gets clearer.
Read it. As simple as that sounds I mean it. Habakkuk 2:2 says whosoever reads it will run with it. If you write it but never read it, you may never run with it. The person who finds it, and reads it is the person who will run with it. A true-life story of a fashion designer, Chasity Sereal on Tamron Hall show who shared how her father inspired her to begin fashion designing. Her father would sketch ideas after work on his sketch pad but he never actualized it. When he died she saw those ideas and realized it's now or never - it's either she steps into fashion designing (something she loves) or she never does it. Notice she was the one who READ her father's vision so she ran with it. Read your visions.
Let time do its work. The vision is always for an appointed time. Don't assume it always has to be right now and don't sit back like you have eternity. The vision is may not be for now and it is surely not for eternity! It is for an appointed time so be alert, not to miss that time. While you wait for it, let time teach you patience, faith, and everything else you'll need for the fulfillment of the vision.
Stay in touch with the Holy Spirit and the word. I find it necessary to state that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. God is the Alpha and the Omega. Basically, time, plans, agendas, visions, and everything else in-between are in God's hands. It's easier to follow Him than figure things out yourself.