In His prayer in John 17, Jesus said,

“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me…I gave them the word that you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given, for they are yours…I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me..

I found myself praying that same prayer. I wasn’t praying it on purpose, so to speak, but supernaturally. Without even trying, I was saying the things that the Father is saying, loving the ones that the Father had given me. It wasn’t me, it was Christ who lives in me.

Jesus did not try to reproduce by having office hours, and making appointments. Rather, He said to those that the Father gave Him, “Come on with Me.” They had something like three, round-the-clock, years with each other. It must have been something! That has been our heart for many years now. We have tried to walk it out in such a way that those that the Father has given us can get as close as they want for as long as they want. Quite a few have stayed in our home, some longer than others. There have been 3:00am desperate bursting into the house, all night deliverance sessions, lots of house calls, carried some, bandaged others, lots of tears, you name it. And all the while our own flesh and blood children were still with us.

The flesh and blood kids are mostly gone, and now here is a new daughter In The Lord. I wanted her to know that we are not likely to have the time together that would be the desire of a father’s heart, especially a father with a new daughter. If she moved into the house, after three years, I might want a break, but short of that, not to count on it. This to say, that she has full and complete access, whether in tears or rejoicing, whether in confusion or in clarity, yes, even in sickness and in health, and whether abounding or abased. 

This is The Church, as she is revealed on and between the lines of the Scriptures. To the religious she looks like a cult, but to God, she is the light of His life to people living in darkness. She is the validation of, and expression of the Love of Christ in the World.