Reconciliation.Cafe

Why reconciliation?

Reconciliation became my personal mission in 2019. I had been seeking the Lord about direction in ministry. I was really longing to be in full-time ministry. I was a volunteer at my local church and had a job at a bank. I was at what i thought to be a crossroads, and I really wanted the Lord to tell me the specifics of what I’d be doing long-term. What I hadn’t realized was I was caught up in “titles”. “Tell me what I’ll be God and I’ll run full-steam ahead.” Through prayer and taking some time to listen, God finally gave me something. He said “Ambassador of Reconciliation”. I was like “what in the world?!” How do i excel in that? How do I research the heck out of that? What does a successful “ambassador” even look like? Is this a joke God? 

Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Messiah and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Messiah God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them; and He has entrusted the message of reconciliation to us. We are therefore ambassadors for Messiah, as though God were making His appeal through us. We beg you on behalf of Messiah, be reconciled to God. – 2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭TLV‬‬

You see God gave me a “title” that I felt like I needed. But this title would be more of a life-covering, an umbrella that anything I do would fit underneath. I just want to say in doing this, so much pressure has been taken off. You see, i had a habit of wrapping my identity up in titles, but when the season changed; when the title was stripped away, for whatever reason, I’d feel lost or confused. Sometimes I’d have an identity crisis. So to stop this cycle, God, being the good Father that He is, gave me a life-covering. So no matter the season in my life. No matter what I’m doing. Whether it’s leading worship, being in full-time ministry, or working at a bank, I’m an Ambassador of Reconciliation. I am to point to God, through Messiah, through any outlet, on any platform, at every opportunity. God wants to restore the relationship with man in the garden. And my role, in this, is to call the one’s home. So whether I’m singing, drawing, writing, speaking, or just listening, it all fits under the umbrella of “Ambassador of Reconciliation”. 

What is reconciliation and why is it so important? 

As I’ve written in a previous post (Design), God’s original plan for us was what we read about at the beginning of the book Genesis. Walking with God, with no boundaries or space between. Because sin infected the world, it created this chasm between God and man. Reconciliation was the plan to right the ship, restoring the relationship. Jesus bridged the gap, restoring us to right-standing with God the Father, for all who believed. What the first Adam (Adam) couldn’t sustain, the second Adam (Jesus) brought to completion with His death and resurrection. Now, through Jesus, there is no chasm. We can approach God at any time. If you’re feeling any distance between you and God, its you. It’s not Him. He’s promised to be with us always, even to the end of the world.

Reconciliation is not a one-time process, but a lifestyle of being in communion with the Father.

What if I get off track and stray?

There are three steps to be reconciled to God. It’s the same as when you first came to know the Lord. The good thing is when we go off-course, He doesn’t make us start all over and go all the way back to the starting line. He meets us right where we are. Remember, He’s already there, waiting. But the steps are as follows:

1)Revelation – an act of revealing or communicating divine truth – This is the step in which it was revealed to you that you are off-course. Sometimes God himself shows up. (Think Saul/Paul on the road to Damascus) Sometimes a trusted mentor/friend/pastor/ brings something to your attention. Maybe you’re reading your Bible and Holy Spirit reveals something that you’ve been viewing wrong. Either way, this is the step where IT is brought to your attention. 

2)Repentance – to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life – This is the make-it-right phase. You say to the Lord “I’m so sorry I’ve gotten this wrong.” You then confess whatever IT is. And you ask Holy Spirit to help you going forward. You may have to die daily to “that thing” for a while to break it for good. 

3)Reconciliation – to restore; to make consistent or congruous -This is walking in complete alignment with the Trinity. This is ideally where we want to live everyday, and can. We just have to be intentional to listen and be in-tune with Holy Spirit’s voice. 

When we start to listen to other voices and stray, God’s voice REVEALS to us the truth. We must then REPENT, correcting our course, being then RECONCILED and restored back to full communion with Him. It’s not an event but a lifestyle. 

So I have made it my mission. Throughout my life. In every season. No matter the platform, big or small, I am to be an Ambassador of Reconciliation. The power is in the message, not the platform. 

For if, while we were yet enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also boast in God through our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, through whom we have now received reconciliation. – Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭TLV‬‬

So, I implore you on behalf of Christ, be ye reconciled to God.