Kingdom Principle: The Kingdom of God is universal based on the uniqueness of each person.

The Pursuit of Happiness may be a universal right, but Joy is unique to each person.

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11 Psalm 126 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 John 1:6-8, 19-28

DNA is universal to humanity; fingerprints are unique to every person. In the Kingdom of God,  the Salvation of the King has a DNA for all of humanity and it is expressed in the uniqueness of each person’s life. We can look at DNA as something objective to us, or we can look at DNA as our own personal imprint and make-up of who we are genetically. We can also look at the work of Jesus in the same way. (a quick summary of salvation in the kingdom)

The gift of salvation comes to all through the work of Jesus (Acts 4:12), further it is God’s will that all shall be saved. (1 Tim 2:3-4) When we look at salvation in this lens – it is best to describe it as God’s or Your (as in not ours) Salvation. (Psalm 13:5, 40:16, 51:12, 69:13) And yet God’s Salvation once received by all who accept it becomes My Salvation. (Psalm 18:2, 27:1, 62:1-7, 95:1). Therefore we are universally invited into the Kingdom by an act of God, yet each person uniquely enters, one at a time as they are clothed in Jesus’ garments of salvation. (Romans 13:14, Is 59:17, 61:10; Col. 3:9-12, Zec. 3:3-4, Matt 22:11-14) And thus having our eyes open to the Kingdom, (Acts 26:18, John 3:3-8, Ps 146:8, Luke 24:31) we grow and work out our salvation. (1 Peter 2:2, Phil 2:12-13)

Therefore what does this have to do with Joy, Advent and my life right now! When God’s salvation becomes my salvation it changes me. The expression of this change is to be Joy. (The enemy offers comfort and control as opposed to change – from which do you find you greater Joy?) Far too often the majority of our energy is given to preventing change from happening. (Physically (body) we fight aging or simply embrace weight gain, emotionally(soul) it is a lot of work to process change and walking away is easier that working on relationships, spiritually we want to think we have come far “enough”, and it is no fun to choose discipline…) Yet the good news is that change magnifies the uniqueness of God’s message that will come from each person. Joy is unique to each person and, it is a work of the Spirit we must celebrate and rejoice in all circumstances, declaring it is God who is at work in us. John the Baptist paved the way for change his entire life, even while he was still in the womb. It was Joy that caused he as baby to leap in the womb of Elizabeth, as Jesus came near, yet still in the womb of Mary – for this is the expression of two unique persons spirit connecting, for the power of the spirit is not limited by the body or soul.

The impact of God’s salvation on a person is described in this week’s Thessalonians passage. Do you see yourself in these verses? If so, has that always been true – most likely not, it required change– if it doesn’t describe you, what changes might you seek to embrace? These changes will be holistic, meaning that while they begin in unique aspects of your life and self, yet they will universally impact your being. For this is where Joy and Holiness become linked.

YOU have a unique message which will advance the Kingdom of God. The best way to begin the process of articulating that message is through reading of the Scriptures as the “source code” of God’s DNA . Within the Scriptures is Personal Diving Truth, a Trauma Truth and a Personal Truth all which will emerge from within you, making you alive… from there, that message is personalized in you through the lens of the Kingdom of God as you see it around you and the Kingdom of God as it lives in you.

I have established tools that help people discover this truth; most recently another tool has emerged on-line that I really like too. (There have been many I would not suggest – but project210 is worth you investment of time.)

Jesus & John lived out there Personal God Given Truths and we see them in the Word. Jesus’ message as found in his divine truth of Isaiah 61, his trauma truth is found in the prophecies of the Old Testament (Luke 4 combines these two truths) and his Personal Truth is expressed in his relationship with the Father.(John 5:16-30) Simply put Jesus’ purpose (John 4:34, 17:4) was to complete the work of the Father and to destroy the work of the devil.(1 John 3:8) Paul makes it very clear in Eph. 2:10 God has uniquely prepared you for good works – might this fill you with great Joy.

Do you know your Divine, Trauma and Personal Truth from the Scriptures, if not, you must begin by reading the Scripture and listening to the Spirit. If you do… have you spent time articulating your values and strengths this includes your personality profile, all this is helps to the lay the foundation from where you can begin to see how God is gifting you with the power of the Spirit to fulfill your God Given mission. Finally connect the dots with the context you are in and where you can apply yourself at this present moment. This has to do with being able to see the Kingdom of God around you.

Some easy steps to begin the process without looking to assessments or others to direct you:

1. Rejoice  – We all need to learn to feel the joy of Salvation…..
2. Pray  – We all need to learn to hear his voice.
3. Give Thanks – We all need to learn to see things more as God sees them
4. When you sense something or a nudge to do something new…. Do it
5. Keep Doing it as long as it does not conflict with the Scriptures –therefore Read the Word!
6. Begin to listen to your body…. Ex. Don’t feed it until it tells you it’s hungry… when it is thirsty it needs water, when you are tired sleep…
7. Begin to listen to your soul…. Ex.  What emotions are you feeling that are not “righteous” take those to the Lord and your Trauma Truth, What passions and dreams live in you, which you have given up on or simply let die…. Write them down.
8. Begin to listen to your spirit… grow your spirit by search the Scriptures for your Divine Truth, follow “weird convictions to drive down a different route, to ask a stranger a question or to speak up when you don’t know what to say…
9. Know that God is faithful and he will complete these things in you.