Doesn't it always seem like Spiritual things are backwards and upside down? It certainly does for me. What would make sense "in the natural" is never the way of the Kingdom. For example, Jesus said, "So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen" (Matthew 20:16). And, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it" (Matthew 16:25). Totally counterintuitive to the natural way of thinking. And I think (get it?) that's the point. If we're talking about peace that passeth all understanding (Philippians 4:7), or the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge (Ephesians 3:19), then we really need to let the mind of Christ--that's already in us--BE in us. We need to look at things a little bit differently. We need to see things the way God sees them: Back to front. "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure" (Isaiah 46:9-10). We seem to think everything is linear: First this happens then this happens then this happens. Connect the dots. All in a line. But our understanding of time is different than God's. God exists outside of time. He has always been and He will always be. To Him nothing is in doubt. He is all-knowing (except, you know, our sin. Which He has CHOSEN to forget). Before there was ever a sinner, there was a Saviour. The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world. He knows the end from the beginning and is completely prepared for it. Nothing you do ever has or ever will take God by surprise. Jesus wasn't God's "plan B." The cross wasn't something God had to cook up in response to Adam's sin. God's plan was never, "Stay with me in the garden forever," and mad didn't screw up God's plan by sinning. Look at Psalm 90:3, "Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men." You can't have a reconciliation story without something to reconcile. And we know that's what God was doing on the cross. God was in Christ reconciling us to Himself. He knew man was going to believe the serpent's lie. And He knew, at the appointed time, He was going to give His Son to bring us back to Himself. It's like the idea of informed consent. We had to experience the world so that we could CHOOSE the Kingdom. Otherwise we would always wonder if the grass really was greener on the other side. But when you've BEEN on the other side, and then you're offered a more excellent way... well... that's something else entirely. The Kingdom doesn't make sense to the "natural mind." The carnal mind is enmity against God. The upside down, backwards economy of the Kingdom only makes sense to the mind of Christ. "Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (1 Corinthians 2:13). Try your own way, and when you come to yourself, come back to Daddy's house. The last is the first. Lose your life in order to find it. It doesn't make sense front to back, but it DOES make sense back to front!

To walk by faith is to take it one step at a time. To TRUST, and His plan for our lives, even when we don't understand it. Even when we can't see it. Because, remember, we walk by faith and NOT by sight. Things don't always LOOK good, but all things work together FOR good. The biggest key is just being sensitive to the Spirit. Moving when God moves and staying when God stays. Psalm 46:10 tells us to, "Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth." But I don't think this verse is telling us not to move. Because if we don't move how will God be exalted among the heathen? How will He be exalted in the earth? When you are LEAVING my parent church the words, "You are now entering the mission field" are painted above the door. If we never take what we have to those who need it, then we're kind of, in a sense, squandering it. Faith without works is dead. Charity is love in ACTION. You can't walk by faith without walking. And you can't walk by faith without faith. See, we don't "walk it out" in our own power trying to make something happen. Everything that needed to happen already happened 2,000 years ago on the cross. We walk IN it. We REST in it. We be still. Even as we move. Guys, rest is NOT inactivity. Rest is Holy Spirit directed activity. IDENTITY directed activity. Those who are led of the Spirit are the Son(s) of God. You aren't led by the Spirit in order to try to BE a Son. You're led by the Spirit because you ARE a Son. Because you know who you are and you know who your Daddy is. You aren't trying to walk it out in your own power. You aren't "trying" to do anything at all. And believe me, I know there's a delicate balance between "doing what you gotta do" and "trusting in Him." But I think the key, again, is walking IN it. Not trying to be something (or someone) that you're not. Remember my constant example? I'm a writer. I'm not trying to be anything else. I'm simply being who I am, and using my 3 T's (time, talent, treasure) for Him. Presenting your body as a living sacrifice. Letting HIM do whatever HE wants to do in, and through, and as you! You can't walk in Jesus' foot steps. No one can. They're too big. But you CAN do all of the works He did and greater works than those if you believe in Him. If you believe He lives in you. If you believe He is making His own foot steps in your feet. And if it's Jesus walking in your feet--if you trust that, or believe that, or have faith in that--then it's really easy to be still and know that He is God. That He is in control. That He's got your back. That's He's got a plan. That even if you turn to the left or the right He won't punish you or disqualify you. He'll chasten and correct you. He'll keep you on the right path--the more excellent way--and He'll keep you from falling. Babies stumble when they're learning how to walk. Faith is like a muscle. The more you use it the more it grows. Sometimes it takes baby steps. And then those steps get bigger. Until you're running full steam ahead. Moving forward. Exalting the Lord everywhere you go. Shining the light and watching the darkness flee. Receiving His love and releasing it to those who need it. (Spoiler: Those who need God's love... is everybody. And we have it, so we ought to share it!)

I think a big part of walking by faith is... well... walking. If God is always moving, always leading us and guiding us--as a pillar of fire at night and a pillar of smoke during the day--then it seems to me that He doesn't want us to stay still. In fact, that's why God directed Moses to build Him a tabernacle; it could be taken apart and moved. Now, on this side of the cross, WE are the tabernacle of God. WE are the temple of the Holy Ghost. Now He lives in US. But I think the principle of moving remains. A line from one of my favorite songs says, "Tell me should I stay here, or do I need to move..." There are times and seasons for everything. It came to pass not to stay. That's why it's so important to have eyes to see and ears to hear. So important to be led of the Spirit. So important to WALK in the Spirit. And, again, I'm not saying "walk it out." Because to walk something out, in our own strength, is doomed to failure. Jesus doesn't want us to take what He's given us and walk it out. "Are ye so follish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" (Galatians 3:3). Of course not. And, remember, we're not walking in order to get somewhere. We've already arrived. We're walking to explore the Promised Land that we're already in! When God promised the land to Abram, He said, "Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee" (Genesis 13:17). This is the first time the word "walk" is used in the King James Version of the Bible. And if you put any stock in the law of first mention it tells us a great deal about the nature of the word. When God told Abram to walk through the land He was telling Abram to EXPLORE the land. It's the same, almost to the exact phrasing, as Ephesians 3:16-19, "That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." Explore the land, for I shall give it to you. Walk around. Test it out. See what's there. Explore His love, for He gave it to us. He gave HIMSELF to us. Test it out. Use it. Enjoy it. Share it. And let me say this: We KNOW the love of Christ, which passesth knowledge, because it's NOT head knowledge. It's heart knowledge. It's experiential knowledge. Remember, a man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument. It's one thing to know something... and another to KNOW it. To have walked in it. And that's what walking by faith is all about: Trusting that God has not only made a way for us (He IS the Way) but that He is leading and guiding us on the way. A voice from behind tells us, "This is the way, walk ye in it," if we turn to the right or the left. He keeps us on the path. He keeps us from falling. He doesn't punish, but He chastens and corrects. He moves... and we move with Him, because He is moving... in us!

Knowing that there's a plan--a grand scheme--is what allows us to walk by faith. Because it doesn't always seem like there IS a plan. Epecially when setbacks occur. But a pastor friend of mine always says, "A setback is really a set up for a comeback!" And sometimes a "setback" isn't a setback at all. Sometimes it is God's way of protecting us from something. Twice in the book of Proverbs (14:12 and 16:25) we see that there's a way that SEEMS right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. Believe it or not, we don't always know what's best for us. But guess who does: Daddy does. He knows the plan. Every specific aspect of it. There have been many times in my life when I've wished I'd known the plan, the whole plan, and nothing but the plan. Many times when I've wished for a big neon sign telling me what to do. Specifically. Exactly. So I could stop stumbling around and just do what I needed to do. I don't know about you, but I rarely (if ever) get a big neon sign. Most of the time it's just putting one foot in front of the other. Keep going. Keep moving forward. And like I was saying yesterday, one of the most important things we need to do is learn to enjoy the journey. Isn't that what they say? It's not the destination, but the journey? And, really, we've already arrived at the destination. We're already IN the Promised Land of rest because the work is already finished. So instead of trying to figure it out, instead of running around like chickens with our heads cut off, or banging our heads against the wall... what we ought to do is just start enjoying the fruit of Jesus' labor. He did it all so we could get it all. And yet we still try to do it ourselves. Jesus said, "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force" (Matthew 11:12). UNTIL NOW. Because John the Baptist--the last priest of the Levitical order--was decreasing so that Jesus--the true High Priest after the order of Melchisedec--could increase. Jesus came to show us a more excellent way. No longer trying to keep the Law of Moses with the violence of human effort, but resting in--TRUSTING IN--Jesus. Jesus doesn't lead us in the sense that He walks in front of us and we try to follow in His foot steps. They are too big for anybody. Nobody can live Jesus' life except Jesus. He leads us from the inside. Remember the Holy Spirit, our guide? He doesn't make foot steps for us to follow in. He makes foot steps in our feet! "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father" (John 14:12). How could we do greater works than Jesus did by trying to act like Him? That doesn't even makes sense. But we can do all the works He did AND greater works when we understand that it is the power of God--the LOVE of God--WITHIN us that both wills and does His good pleasure. The neon sign may never come. But even if it doesn't... when you don't know what to do, do what you know. Love. Be YOU. Do what you do IN love. I'm a writer... so when I don't know what to do, I write. I write about Jesus. I write about love. That's how I walk by faith. I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know how it's going to happen. But I know who I am, and I know who my Daddy is, and that's enough!

We walk by faith, not by sight. We trust the plan, even if we don't know every specific part of the plan. It's enough to know that there IS a plan. It's enough to know that Daddy loves us, and has our best interests at heart. He is mindful of us. His mind is full of us. He's always thinking about us, and the thoughts He thinks toward us are of peace, and not evil, to give us the expected end. And really, on the cross He GAVE us the expected end. We are not walking TO the Promised Land. We are already IN the Promised Land. Because the Promised Land--rest, Jesus--is in us. That's why we have peace. Because we're not trying to GET somewhere, we're simply exploring where we already are. And here's my thought for today: How do you walk? One step at a time. A big part of this everlasting, never ending, eternal life-long journey is just that. Enjoying the journey. Sometimes we are in such a hurry to get some where that we miss out on the actual process of GETTING there. Again, finished work--we're already there. But as God reveals Himself to us and in us and through us and as us there's a maturing that takes place. We are changed from glory to glory. We ARE complete in Him. That's a done deal. But the still small voice of the Lord is always calling us up hither. Up higher. And I'm not talking about "new levels, new devils." I'm talking about exploring the height, and breadth, and length, and depth of His love for us. Seeking the Kingdom, not because we don't have it, but because we need to know what we've got! Step by step. "For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little" (Isaiah 28:10). And notice, it's not just "precept upon precept." It's, "Precept upon precept, precept upon precept." Not just, "line upon line." It's, "line upon line, line upon line." Like an onion there are layers and layers and layers. As we come up hither, we go deeper and deeper. A little here and a little there. This is a marathon, not a sprint. One more time--we've already arrived. We're simply journeying into the heart of the matter. Not GETTING somewhere, but exploring where we're at. Not GETTING something, but receiving what we have. Fighting the good fight of faith and laying hold of eternal life. We HAVE eternal life, but we need to lay hold of it. We need to receive it. And the best way to receive the love of God, the Father/Son relationship that IS eternal life, is to release it. To give it away. To share it. How else could we explore the height, and length, and depth, and breadth of God's love other than to stretch it out? To use it. You know how they say, "If you don't use it, you lose it?" This isn't EXACTLY that, but I'm convinced that in order to truly EXPERIENCE it, you have to use it. And in order to use it, you have to walk in it. Notice I didn't say, "walk it out." We aren't doing this in our own power, because we don't have any power. Thank God that in our weakness, His strength is made perfect. Thank God that while we walk in faith, one step at a time, He catches us if we stumble. He keeps us from falling. He calls us up hither--deeper and deeper--into His love. He fills us with His love so that it might overflow out of us naturally. So that we might experience it even as we share it with others. Here a little, there a little. Until it's as natural as breathing. Because it's not just what we do. It's who we are!

I think this Rant series is really just a continuation of the last one. We know that the Holy Spirit is our guide. He leads and guides us into all truth. And we know that those we are led by the Spirit are the Son(s) of God. But for the next couple of days I'm going to try to make the journey easier for us. And, as I often do, I'm going to give away the punchline right at the beginning and then build off of it. Ok? Ok. Here it is: God has a plan for us. Corporately and individually. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end" (Jeremiah 29:11). There IS a plan. There IS an expected end. And, really, that end came 2,000 years ago on the cross. "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life" (Proverbs 13:12). God doesn't want us always hoping something will happen. Because then when it doesn't happen, or when it takes longer than we think it should, it's so easy to get discourged. But when the desire comes--and it came on the cross--it is a tree of life. THE tree of life. Jesus. "...Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). He is our hope, but on the cross He became our reality! The Amplified Bible says it like this, "...Christ within and among you, the Hope of [realizing the] glory." It isn't glory we hope for. That's what already happened. It's REALIZING the glory. It's fighting the good fight of faith and LAYING HOLD of the eternal life that we've already been given. Recieving and releasing that glorious gift of God. Remember when we look in the mirror with an open (unveiled) face? We SEE the glory of the Lord and are changed into that same image from glory to glory. It's a journey. A journey into the heart of the matter--which is the heart. God's heart beats in our chest. And the more we let Him love us, the more we dwell in His love and seek (and find) His love... the more we experience and explore His love (by loving others), the more mature we get. The discouraging part is not that we don't know what the plan is. We know what the expected end is: "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13). AND we know that this end has already come. You can't get any more perfect than having the perfect One live inside of you. "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power" (Colossians 2:10). The discouraging part is when the plan doesn't look like we think it should look. The discouraging part is when the plan seems to take twists and turns. Things don't go the way WE think they should and we start to judge by appearance instead of judging righteous judgment. We panic instead of trusting the plan. We start to walk by sight, and freak out when things don't "look good." But guys, whatever it is... it came to pass, not to stay. Life is all about changing and learning and growing. How can you learn from your mistakes if you never make any mistakes? You can't. Which is why, "...we walk by faith, and not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). We know that there IS a plan. And we know WHAT the plan is. Maybe not every specific step in the road. But that's ok. It's enough to know that Daddy loves us, and has our backs. That's what faith is.

The Holy Spirit is our guide. Without Him, we can't understand Spiritual things. Without the Holy Spirit--our love receptor--we can't understand love. We can't understand what it means to BE loved, or what it means TO love. And that's why we are on a never-ending, everlasting, eternal, life-long journey into the heart of the matter. Love is simple--love is giving, love is living--but it is vast. It never ends and it never fails. So, in a sense, it's not the destination. We have already arrived at the destination. We are IN the Kingdom of God (because the Kingdom of God is within us) and we ARE the Kingdom of God. The journey isn't GETTING to the Kingdom. The journey is EXPLORING the Kingdom. That's the revelation I had about Matthew 6:33, "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." We're not seeking the Kingdom in order to get it--as if we don't have it. We're seeking the Kingdom to see what we already have! And all these things are "added" to us when we find out--just like the characters in the Wizard of Oz--that we had what we were looking for all along! Our guide shows us where we are, and He shows us how we got there. He testifies of our true identity by testifying of Jesus. He is the Spirit of truth and He whispers the ultimate truth of the universe in a still small voice. The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hand. Daddy loves you. Daddy loves you. Daddy loves you. You have been blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly Christ. You have been given all things that pertain to life and godliness. Jesus did it all so you could get it all. And now that you HAVE it all... seek it. Explore it. Enjoy it. Share it. Test the height and the length and the depth and the breadth of His love by loving others as much and as hard as you can. Stop using love as a means of trying to get something, and realize that if you have everything you need--and you do, because you have Jesus--you can share what you have. You can give it away without fear of losing it. Because it's a river of living water springing out of you. A well that will never--CAN NEVER--run dry. Those who are led by the Spirit are the Son(s) of God. Because those who are led by the Spirit are led into their true identity which IS the Son of God! Because those who are led by the Spirit are led into love. The Spirit says, "Come up hither," and it empowers us to RISE in love. To love one another with a pure love that doesn't expect, or need, anything. A love without motivation because love IS the motivation. Doing for others NOT because we want them to do for us... but simply because we love them. Remember, love is simple. Even the greatest love a man can have is simple--laying down his life for his friends. But as simple as it is it's so vast. So powerful. Love is the solution, no matter what the problem is. Love is the most basic--and powerful--desire of mankind. It's what everybody wants. What everybody needs. And it's what we've got. It's who we are. So when we lay down our lives for one another, we give them the very thing that they need. When we love one another we set flame to a Holy Ghost wildfire that consumes everything in it's path and leaves only itself. Love feeds on love, and it grows. The more you give, the more you seemingly have. The more you EXPERIENCE.

This might seem like a little bit of a departure from where we've been in this Rant series, but stick with me. I don't believe in "falling in love." I believe in the One who keeps us from falling. I believe in RISING in love! Which is exactly where the Spirit leads and guides us as He beckons us to, "...Come up hither..." (Revelation 4:1, 11:12). See, Paul spoke of meeting people right where they're at, being all things to all people. And I can't stress how important that is. If you can make a connection with someone then you can really affect them. But the effect that we're going for is lifting people up on the wings of love. Showing people a more excellent way. And the only way you can show something to someone is if you already know it. And the only way you can know it is if someone (Jesus, the Holy Spirit) has already shown it to you. Did you ever notice that the best sermons have an element of the preacher's experience in them? When the preacher has a PHD (personally has done it) then he KNOWS what he's talking about. And a man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument. Which is how we started this series--with the truth that a guide is better than a map! A map can be outdated--and, listen, I'm not saying the Bible is outdated. I love the Bible. But if you don't know the author, the book can do more harm than good--but you can ALWAYS trust a guide. When He reaches His hand out and says, "Come up here with me," you can rest assured that that's the place to be. Because He's been there. He IS there. It feels, in a sense, like He's taking us somewhere, but really He's just showing us where we already are. The race is over. It is finished. We have arrived. We are complete in Him. So any time it feels like we're "changing" what's really happening is Jesus--the light of the world--is simply revealing the change that took place on the cross. He shines His light and we can see things clearly. But back to my original point: If you have to "fall" in order to do something, it's probably not something you should be doing in the first place. ESPECIALLY love. Isn't it funny that when we talk about Adam messing up we call it "the fall"? And isn't it funny that most people have a fear of heights--which is really a fear of falling? But when it comes to love we think falling is the be-all end-all. Maybe "funny" isn't the right word. But I hope I'm getting my point across. Love isn't about falling. It's about rising. The Holy Spirit leads us always upwards. The Holy Spirit teaches us how to love by teaching us how we ARE loved by the God who IS love. Heaven is above the earth right? The mind leads the body? If we stop trying to fall and just begin to rise... that's when TRUE love--sacrificial, agape love--overflows out of our innermost being. That's when we rise. And that's when we elevate those around us. Condemnation puts people down. Affirmation lifts people up. The Holy Spirit--our love receptor--calls us up and fills us up and lifts us up. And when we know what we've got we can share what we've got. When we know we're accepted and loved, we can accept and love each other. You can't give what you don't have, and you can only give what you do have. When you know you have love... you can love!

How do we let the Holy Spirit guide us? Romans 8:14 tells us that, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." But how exactly do we let the Holy Spirit lead us? I really don't think the Holy Spirit tells us to, "Do this or else." I think there are times when we have a very strong feeling that we should or shouldn't do something. I remember once I was in the parking lot at work, and I was early (of course). So I spent some time in prayer. And more clearly than anything I KNEW I needed to leave work, call in, and go see somebody. It was a feeling coming from deep within. It was me following my heart. Because that's what the Holy Spirit is. It's your heart. It's God's heart beating with love in your chest. That's WHO the Holy Spirit is. Jesus. God in the flesh. Love in a body. And that's why I had to leave work, because I needed to go love somebody. The Holy Spirit leads and guides us into all truth--the truth that we KNOW, but need help UNDERSTANDING. The truth that Daddy loves us unconditionally. So we are led by the Spirit when we let God love us. When we stop disqualifying ourselves--I'm just a sinner in need a saviour, and God could never love me. WRONG! Before the cross you were a sinner. Then you got saved by grace. Now you're something different. Jesus presented you to Himself as a bride without spot, wrinkle, or any such thing. You're not a sinner, you're a saint. You're not a servant, trying to earn something from his master. You're a Son, who knows that everything Daddy has is yours! Which is exactly what Romans 8:14 says: For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. The Spirit leads us by telling us who we really are. By telling us who Jesus really is in us! Jesus said it like this, "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me" (John 15:26). The Holy Spirit doesn't tell us what to do, the Holy Spirit tells us who we are! Because what we do flows from who we are. It's all about identity, because it's all about love. God is love. That's not just what He does, that's who He is. And since we are as He is in this world... that's who WE are. Since He doesn't just live IN us, but lives THROUGH us and AS us... the only thing we need to know is that Daddy loves us. That we are His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. That we have been with Him always and all He has is ours! That the love He fills us to overflowing with is the same love that we share with one another. When the Holy Spirit "told" me to leave work... it was with the express purpose of loving someone. That's all God wants to do. That's all God wants US to do. When He leads us, He leads us into love. When He guides us, He guides us into love. And when we're IN love--when we know and believe that love is in us--that's when it flows freely out of us like a river of living water!

The Holy Spirit is our guide. And because of that we can safely follow our hearts. We know that love never fails. But in order to UNDERSTAND that love never fails, we have to understand what love is trying to accomplish. Jesus said it in John 10:10, "The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows" (AMP). Love never fails because love gives life. Love IS life. Abundant, everlasting, eternal, Resurection life. To live is to love and to love is to live. That's why Jesus died and rose again: so that we could have HIS life. On the cross He gave His life for us and He gave His life to us. Love is giving. Love is life. Jesus giving His life to us and us giving our life to each other. Sometimes it SEEMS like love fails because we put expectations on it. "If I love her, she'll love me back." So when she doesn't... we think love fails. But this selfish motivation means it wasn't really love at all. Love doesn't HAVE a motivation, love IS the motivation! And that's what the Holy Spirit teaches us. The Holy Spirit leads and guides us into all truth. We have an unction from the Holy Spirit and we KNOW all things, but knowing something and understanding it are two different things. It's the difference between head knowledge and heart knowledge. The difference between knowing ABOUT God, and KNOWING God. It's the difference between religion and relationship. It's the difference between life and death. When we love in order to get something, we're not operating from the revelation that we already have everything we need. And really, when we love in order to get something, we're not loving at all. We're still trying to earn our bread with the sweat of our brow. We're still trying to finish the work. But the GIFT of God is eternal life, and you can't earn a gift. You can only receive it. And then, since it fills us up to overflowing, we can only release it. That's what our guide--the Comforter--teaches us. He teaches us that we CAN love because we ARE loved. The ultimate truth of the universe is that the Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into His hand. But, again, it's one thing to KNOW that and another thing to UNDERSTAND that. To operate in that truth. To BELIEVE that truth. To LIVE that truth. And the main reason a guide is better than a map is that a guide actually takes you where you wan to go. A map can't do anything unless you actually get up and move. But a guide is right there with you, step by step. A guide can make the journey easier. Because a guide has already been there and done that. "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus knows what we're going through because He went through it. He knows the Way (and the Truth, and the Life). He has what we need in any and every situation. Because He has love. Because He IS love. And that's what it's all about. He leads and guides us into love!