God wants us to experience Him in the most powerful of ways. He has promised us abundant life. As we follow Him with the whole heart there is no limit to what He will pour out in our lives. Be encouraged to keep pressing in for more of all that God has for your life. The good is the enemy of the best – keep going for His best!

Heavenly Portals

Recently I had a dream of a heavenly portal where joy was being poured out in the Presence of God. I was standing in this place where I was experiencing the waves of His glory circulating in this portal fashion – through this experience the joy of the Spirit was overwhelming. Someone was standing there watching as I was telling them that “you going to have to press in for this” – to discover this portal of joy in God’s Presence. Then I went on to say that God does not want any of His people to miss out on these essential encounters in His Presence.

This was a really interesting dream as I typically don’t refer to “portals of joy”. In this case there was an actual portal where you could press in to experience God’s joy and Presence in this particular way.

The Strength of God

Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

Nehemiah 8:10

In a practical sense we should realize that God’s joy is our strength. If we are depleted of His joy then we are functioning in our own strength. Jesus was anointed with the “oil of joy” far above His companions. (Psalm 45:6-7) The simplest things in the Kingdom of God are the most powerful. One of the aspects of the Kingdom of God is “joy” in the Holy Spirit. We also know that joy is found in the Presence of God – as David experienced this kind of joy as He engaged with God with the whole heart.

You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalms 16:11

The key to experiencing this joy, as it is with all things kingdom related, is to “press in”. What this also means is that we cannot take a passive approach to the things of God. There is effort required. We are to worship and love God with all of our “heart, soul, mind and strength”.

But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Deuteronomy 4:29

This is effort being applied with all that we are in surrender to His purposes. “Press In” is a term that’s been used in prayer circles to express our pursuit and seeking of the Lord.

Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God. Therefore arise and build the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the holy articles of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the LORD.”

1 Chronicles 22:19

Here we get a little extended version of what it means to “press in” or “seek God”. While pressing in is very much related to prayer, seeking God also incorporates other aspects of activity as we look at this passage. Here “seeking the Lord” involved building the house of God, bringing the ark of the covenant and the holy articles into the house. It is very much the idea of “preparing a place” for the Lord. When we seek the Lord we want to be preparing our hearts – as we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. This requires us to do whatever things are necessary to make our hearts ready for His Presence and anointing in our lives. Just as we don’t want to do things that “grieve” the Spirit from our lives – rather we want to live in such a way that He is attracted to us because we’ve “made ourselves ready” for Him.

There is a simplicity of devotion that we find in the Lord that causes His joy, peace, love and grace to abound in us. There is great joy in the Presence of God! This is our portion and inheritance in Christ. If you can imagine David experiencing this from a pre-Christ angle – how much more do we have this unspeakable joy available to us as those who are actually “filled” with the Holy Spirit!

God has not ordained us for a trickle an an experience but an overflow! As we seek first His Kingdom then all these things are added to us. Set the Lord as your chief desire and pursue Him with the whole heart. When we seek Him with the whole heart then we will find Him.

This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him,
Who seek Your face.
Selah

Psalms 24:6