JANUARY 3 THE STAGES OF BIRTH

 

The natural birth process which brings a human baby into the world is similar to the process of the birth of a vision in the spirit world.  Yesterday we meditated on conception and development of a vision.  The next stage is travail.

Travail.  Ecclesiastes 5:3 states:  "For a dream cometh through the multitude of business" (Ecclesiastes 5:3).  The meaning of the word "multitude" is "great". "Business", according to one Hebrew meaning, is travail--meaning difficulty. So a dream or vision comes through "great travail.”

In natural birth there are facts about travail that parallel the spiritual travail which births a vision.  Natural travail is a time of intense, concentrated effort to birth a child.  This time of travail is also called "labor.” As in the delivery of a child, a spiritual vision is birthed by intense mental, physical, and spiritual concentration. 

In the natural world, during the time of travail the one giving birth must let the natural birth process take control.  Physically forcing the baby into the birth canal before it opens can kill the child.  The same is true in the spirit world.  In order to birth spiritual vision you must let God take control of your life.  If you try to birth the vision in your own strength it will abort the plan of God.  Everything within you may cry out to push and bring the spiritual vision forth with natural abilities, but by self-effort you can destroy the vision. 

As a mother in travail hides herself from public gaze, so those in travail spiritually must be alone with God.  The birth of a vision--the revelation of your divine destiny--will not occur if you are constantly busy, surrounded by people and projects.  As a mother about to give birth, you must seek seclusion for the spiritual birthing process.

Travail is not easy.  If you have been going through difficult times--through no fault of your own--could it be that God is birthing a new vision in you?   Many times people blame Satan for circumstances that are actually engineered by God to take them to their destiny.

Take time to be alone with God during the difficult time of travail.  Let the Holy Spirit bring forth the vision in God's perfect timing. Let God maintain control of the process because if you try to bring your vision to pass in your own strength, you will abort it.

Spiritual birth, like natural birth, is a process.