New Level, New Thing, New Tools
By Karleigh Wood
Director of Intel
Every new level presents an opportunity to align ourselves with our New Man and who we are becoming in Christ.
These questions remain:
Who do we align ourselves with?
What is the new thing to discover and learn to walk in?
Do we walk out what has been established within us?
OR
Do we revert back to Old Man tendencies, mentalities, perspectives and language?
As we mature in Christ, what was ok (or even helpful) at a certain level becomes obsolete at a new level and gets replaced as a part of our new creation in Christ.
The key is to identify:
What is the old thing that God wants to upgrade at this new level?
What am I carrying around that used to be good but is no longer needed at this stage? What does God want to replace it with, or does He want to take me to a new higher level regarding something?
I am reminded how Graham says there are two battles: one to get free and the other to remain free. What if the battle to get free is about discovering what new thing He wants to give us and learning to walk in it? Often, if I am in a season of discovering something new in my next season, I will be presented with circumstances that offer me an opportunity to establish it in a deeper way, to really put my stake in the territory. What if part of the battle to remain free is about establishing what He has already given us?
I have learned that Old Man stuff stinks! It comes with stink’in think’in. Stink’in attitude. Stink’in words. Stink’in feelings. It is the flesh gone bad. It is like walking around like we’re Charlie Brown’s perpetually dirty friend, Pig Pen. Who wants that? We are encouraged over and over in the New Testament to not live by the flesh but by the Spirit. A powerful “instead” is Ephesians 4:23: “Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.” Doing so opens our hearts and minds to all the great opportunities at hand.
As we learn to identify the new creation that is on offer (and we grow in it more and more within our own lives), it becomes easier to identify the same Key Territory in others. More advanced application comes when we learn how to use the tools we have been given to help others connect with their New Man. What language best facilitates this connection for them? How is God expanding our vocabulary and application opportunities, either within our own life or for someone else we know?
As we walk these Key Territories out, we find more and more opportunities to expand the Kingdom within our spheres of influence for people’s good and God’s glory. Oh, happy days! Oh, what happy days it is to be a facilitator of His Kingdom here on earth!
– Karleigh
