Yield

My greatest fear, often times, is sharing the Truth that God has revealed to me through His Grace.  

As I prayed this morning, my head rested on my son's bed. 

 I asked the Lord to help me to be loyal to Him.  -That He would help me to avoid being loyal to man over being loyal to Him, for He knows that I sometimes hold back sharing all that He has taught me through His Grace for fear of offending man and the  doctrines of men.  

As I prayed for His anointing and presence in my heart to carry out His will, my eyes opened and went directly to a symbol on my son's blanket.   As I had prayed with eyes closed, unknowingly my head rested on this symbol:   It was a road sign.  I paused and really considered its meaning before rising up and going downstairs.    My son's blanket has a "construction" theme - trucks, dump trucks, etc.  The Lord had brought my eyes to this particular sign on the blanket -- a Yield sign.  

The YIELD Symbol on My Son's Blanket

It was one of those moments that I knew the Lord had put His finger on His instructions for me.  I am to YIELD to His will and what He has taught me through His Grace.  

The story doesn't end with this moment.  Even a few hours before this moment, I had shared a passing thought with the Lord.  

"If only there were a verse in the Bible, Lord, that says I am to share with others the revelations you have taught me through Your Grace."   

 I know that probably sounds silly because God has continually shown me that I am to speak what He says to me, but Satan truly battles me and makes every attempt to keep me silent.  So a few hours before my prayer in my son's room, I had shared that particular thought with the Lord. 

After contemplating the meaning of the YIELD sign, I went downstairs and eventually went outside to watch my boys play on their big wheels.  I read the Bible as they road up and down the driveway.  During that time, the Lord very obviously directed my reading to Romans chapter 12.  I will include it below;  His revelation did not stop with a YIELD sign, for the great Creator was still attempting to teach me, confirming and answering two specific areas of prayer  from moments before and earlier that morning:  

12 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

² And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
³ For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
⁴ For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
⁵ So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
⁶ Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;
⁷ Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;
⁸ Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.
⁹ Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
¹⁰ Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;
¹¹ Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
¹² Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;
¹³ Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.
¹⁴ Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
¹⁵ Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.
¹⁶ Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
¹⁷ Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
¹⁸ If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
¹⁹ Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
²⁰ Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
²¹ Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

While reading this chapter, the Lord instructed me to examine the word PRESENT in verse 1.  I'll include a picture of the word's original Greek definition as it appeared in my Strong's Concordance.   As I flipped through the Concordance in search of the definition of PRESENT, I quite literally thought, 

"What if it means yield..." 

No sooner did I think that, I turned to the page with Present's definition.  I have no recollection of this moment, but some time in the past, I wrote the word Yield using a pink pen right beside of the Greek word paristemi.  This Greek word ~paristemi~ is translated as eleven English words in the KJV.  What am I saying      ...     Present and Yield are both the same Greek word ------>  paristemi.  

The Actual Entry in my Strong's Concordance

1.  In Romans 12, believers are told to yield/present their bodies to and for the Lord's work.  The Lord had shown me the word YIELD earlier in the morning as I prayed, and then, soon after, had brought me to this verse.

2.  Earlier in the morning, I had what seemed to be a passing thought:  "If only there were a verse in the Bible, Lord, that says I am to share with others the revelations you have taught me through Your Grace."
 In verse 3, Paul states that he is speaking to us by the very GRACE given unto him.  What is he admonishing us to do....  to fulfill the function that the Lord has given us to fulfill.  He goes on to outline the list of offices. 

As Paul shares in Romans 12, believers do not all have the same office (practice, act, function).  Yet, whatever office the Lord's Grace has imparted to a believer, the believer is called in verse one to present his or her body a living sacrifice.  Share, do, speak, perform the very office (function) that He has imparted to each individual believer.  
 
Satan would have me deny the office that the Lord has given me.  The gift that His Grace has bestowed on me.  I must choose as to whether I want to obey the Lord and present (yield) myself a living sacrifice by sharing this gift/this office that His Grace imparts to me, or I can choose to be silent.  I can choose to YIELD (present in verse 1) or I can choose to resist the Spirit's  teaching and revelation.

Merriam Webster's definition for yield is "to give up and cease resistance."   Paul, through the Spirit, exhorts believers in this chapter to carry out whatever measure of grace each has been given.

His Grace imparts various gifts to believers.  We are not called to keep those gifts to ourselves.  Instead, they are to be shared with the body of Christ - for edification and for our perfecting, so that we can all come to the knowledge of the Truth.  

I want to continue yielding to the Lord and sharing the areas of Truth that He has taught me through His Grace. Man-made and man-led doctrines & practices are against the will of God and lead the flock astray.  I will continue to share as He leads.    If I do not fulfill the office that He has given me, then I will have denied Him.  And that is unacceptable by Him and by me.    

I humbly thank the Lord for His answers this day.  Satan seems to have fled, as he often does during such times.