The Missing Cross to Purity

The following extract of letters from the early Quaker notable, William Dewsbury, is an outstanding writing describing the workings of the Spirit to teach, convict, and lead to salvation, while waiting on the Lord in silence; he particularly relates the process in precise scriptural language:

All people who desire to know the living God, let the time past suffice in which you have followed men who have deceived you, and cease from them; and turn to the true Prophet, whom Moses the servant of the Lord declared, the Lord God would raise up, Deut 18:15, his elect and chosen servant, to raise up the tribe of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; whom he has also given for a Light to the Gentiles, and to be his salvation to the ends of the earth. Whom Isaiah the prophet also declared, the Lord would raise up, to open the fountain of life and salvation to all that thirst, Isa 55:1-3, and is now witnessed by all that hearken to his counsel, who calls,' Ho!' to every one that thirsts,' come you to the waters, and he that has no money, come you buy and eat, yes, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which satisfies not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness: incline your ear and come unto me; hear, and your souls shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.' " All people, look no longer forth; the glad tidings of the gospel of eternal salvation is heard within, in this day of the Lord's mercies, in which is teaching his people himself, as was declared by the prophet Isaiah 54:13, and is now witnessed by all the children of light, whose minds are turned within to wait on the Lord for his teaching, to establish them in the covenant of life and peace, who is performing his promise, which he declared by his servant the prophet Jeremiah to all that wait on him; namely,' This shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel, in those days, said the Lord; I will put my law into their hearts, and write it in their inward parts, and will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people; and they shall no more teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they shall all know me from the least of them unto the greatest of them, said the Lord; for I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more.'

Therefore, every one that desires to know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent, turn your minds within, and examine your hearts, search and try your ways with the light that Christ Jesus has enlightened you withal, that shows you in your hearts what is sin, that pride and covetousness, lying and swearing, dissimulation and cheating, vain and idle communications, foolish jesting and unbelief, are sins. These things you know to be sins in your own consciences, by the righteous law of God in the heart, that reproves you for them in secret. There is your teacher, the Spirit of the Lord within you: which, in this mighty day of his power, he is pouring upon all flesh, according to his promise declared by the prophet Joel 2:28-29, and is now witnessed by his sons and by his daughters, who walk in the light, and are led and guided by his Spirit within them, which keeps the conscience void of offence towards God and towards man. "Hearken, every one, diligently to the counsel of the Lord, the light that witnesses for God in the conscience; give up to be guided by it; then you will need no more to be taught of men, neither shall your teacher be removed into a corner any more; but your eye shall see your teacher, and 'your ear shall hear a voice behind you, saying, This is the way, walk in it, when you turn to the right hand or to the left,' as was declared by the prophet, Isaiah 30:20-21, which is now witnessed :— and that is the living word of God within you, which has raised desires in you towards God. Every one in whom such desires are raised, wait in the light and power within, which has raised the desires; and the Lord will then strengthen you, and give you power to wait on him in the way of his judgments, until the carnal, earthly, sensual mind, which has led you to delight in lusts and pleasures, and in created enjoyments, below God, is cut down and slain by the word of God within which is a sharp and two-edged sword, to slay down the first man, which is of the earth, earthy; and then will you come to witness a being 'the slain of the Lord.' The sentence of death will be passed upon the first man that has led you from God, and on all the strength, wisdom, and righteousness you had in him; and in the power of the Spirit, you will be brought, in the true sense of the poverty of your spirits, to hunger and thirst after the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, to prize and love him, and to judge and deny self with his light, and in it to wait for his power to guide you in every word and work."

William Dewsbury

The Environment for Success

You must return to your first love, the way you felt when you were first touched by the Lord - on fire. Kindle that fire again. Seek with all your heart. Hate your evil thoughts, profane words, and slavery to your pleasures; they are your enemies. Dedicate yourself to be rid of them once and forever, through the grace of God that will save you completely from you sins. Focus on becoming pleasing to God. Seek God's direction in your life, confident that your life will then be lived to the fullest and best possible results.

He has told me several times in my journey to "keep seeking peace." He also said for anyone to be successful: "Your motive must be noble and pure." To be successful, your motivation for meditation, (wait, listen, and watch), must be to seek peace; it cannot be to seek financial gain, a more powerful personality, power, religious position, spiritual gifts,^* money, or prestige. These are all rooted in the ego flesh, which the Spirit mortifies in the meditation process. You must humbly approach meditation willing to give up anything asked; eager to crucify your lusts and affections; willing to repent of any evil in your heart revealed; and hopeful of receiving his words, light, spirit and peace in return. Without this motivation, you will receive little, if any, help. If you approach meditation, with reservations about something in your life you selfishly intend to retain, whatever asked, you will hear little. If you approach meditation, seeking specific answers to questions you have, therefore trying to set the agenda yourself, rarely will you hear.

^*Do not seek gifts, seek the giver. If you seek gifts, you will not succeed. But if you seek the giver, you will be showered with gifts. William Penn said, "They, who seek power, are those who do not receive Christ in his convictions upon the soul, and therefore, they will always lack power; but those who seek his convictions, receive power, like those of old, to become the children of God, through the pure obedience of faith."

If you are serious about seeking God, you must make every effort to be honest: no lying, no cheating, no exaggerating, no omission of details that change your statements. If you slip in the moment, which happens even while trying, go back to the person and correct your misstatement; all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. Rev 21:8. When you are willing to give up anything, so that you can get closer to God, you have nothing to lie about any more; for one lies to gain or preserve, whether it is goods or pride.

This is not a 100 meter dash; it is a 100 kilometer marathon. A command to me, particularly appropriate to the start of your journey is: "Do not despise small beginnings."

To seek union with God is not always pleasant, especially the crucifixion of self. As Molinos says: He that would go to perfection by the means of sweetness and consolation, is mistaken. The soul that would be united to Christ, must be conformable to him, following him in the way of suffering on the cross. Jesus told us before beginning: first sit down and calculate the cost whether he has sufficient means to finish it? Otherwise, when he has laid the foundation and is unable to complete, all who see it will begin to mock and jeer at him. Saying, This man began to build and was not able (worth enough) to finish. He is telling us to not even start, unless we are committed to going all the way, including death of self through suffering and tribulation. This commitment comes from a deep hunger, a hunger established by God to draw you to him. He already has far too many, calling themselves 'christians,' who never even started, much less finished, building his temple to completion in their hearts. But we can testify truly, that having gone through much suffering and tribulation, the pain is nothing compared to the reward of knowing God. For God has created us to be loved by him and for us to love him. He is pure, clean, holy, righteous, merciful, truthful, faithful, peaceful, full of joy, and abounding in love for us - eagerly awaiting the opportunity to show his love for us. But to be in his presence and receive his love, we must be changed to become pure to able to receive his spirit in measure - our wineskin can't hold the new wine - we must let him prepare us a new wineskin - so we can possess and enjoy the superior wine. From the voice of the Lord, "Trust him. He will lead you and watch over you continually. He will never leave you."

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 1 Pet 4:1-2. Tribulation is not a hard day at the office, a car wreck, or some natural difficulty; it is unmistakably, supernaturally imposed.

For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps.
1 Pet 2:21. (There is much more on tribulation later in this section.)

The Lord has told me that "compared to the impoverished, third-world nations , very few in the prosperous, industrialized western world will be willing to completely sacrifice their selfish way of life." Don't sacrifice your eternal happiness for the transient pleasures of your lifestyle, however good it feels. Remember, pride of life results from lust's accumulations. Pride of life is the major problem for the industrialized nations; we imagine that we have the world by the tail. Presumption is the major spiritual error; we imagine that we can please God without crucifixion of the selfish spirit to its death.

His promise was: if you seek, as your FIRST priority, the Kingdom of Heaven and His Righteousness, all your other needs will be met. We can testify to the truth of his promise, that while seeking the Lord as our first priority in life, He has met all our material needs far in excess of our hopes. Rather than accumulation, your focus should be on giving from your excess; for it is more blessed to give than receive. You must practice and develop the habit of reflexive giving. When you see a need that you can fill from your excess, fill it. Just react to what comes in front of you, or you can give to deserving charities such as our favorites: Girls and Boys Town and TheSmileTrain. By giving, you are practicing what you seek - love and death of self; but give in secret, receiving no recognition from man. Only your Father in heaven will know, and your treasure will become eternal. And remember, it is the love of money that is the root of all evil, not money. Rich or poor can love money. Rich or poor can have little regard for money. Remember, it is written, give to the poor, and I will repay you. And, God loves a cheerful giver. Ease of giving comes with practice. Start slow and build as you feel the joy of giving. If you can't do this yet, wait until he shows you the root of your problem in your heart and takes it away.

Of course, everyone able should be employed, and so be in service to the creation; any honest job is honorable, which includes being a stay-at-home mom. We cannot be slothful, doing no work, living off the government or others' generosity. The slothful are close kin to the destroyer.

As long as you are in an honest occupation, remain where you are. The more changes in your life that you make, the more unsettled you become and the less you can hear Him because your mind is racing to accommodate your new circumstances. Don't relocate to a new job, city, country, or house unless necessary. Make as few changes as possible in your worldly life.

To single people: If you sincerely desire to seek God, you cannot be seeking a husband or wife at the same time, because that pulls you away from your primary goal. There is nothing wrong with marriage, but you cannot forsake all, while grasping for more; you cannot loose your natural life, while trying enlarge the same. When you attain the clear guidance of the voice of God, if it is best for you to be married, He will clearly tell you whom and when to marry; remember, God destroyed the old world by water because the sons of God were marrying people outside of the faith, to whoever they were physically attracted. Before you begin, count the costs. If you have heard the call, don't be like those who said they were too busy with: a new wife, their business, their farm, or burying their parents. Long after George Fox had attained union and entered paradise, with no desire on his part, he was told by the Lord to marry Margaret Fell, also a prominent Quaker.

As you begin to deny your former evil activities in the world, the basis of your friendships will diminish. As you deny foul language, revelry, drinking, carousing, etc., your friends will become uncomfortable and begin to attack your commitment to goodness. You will no longer have anything to gain from socializing with them. For what fellowship can light have with dark or righteousness with lawlessness? Yes, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you. Your former social friendships will necessarily disappear, else they will hate you and persecute you; or worse, drag you back into the world as you seek their approval. Are you trying to win the approval of men, or of God? This doesn't mean that you won't be kind and courteous to those of the world with which your occupation brings you into association; just that you will not socialize with them, because it would be painful.

If you are preaching or teaching religion before being perfected and specifically authorized by Christ, to progress spiritually, you must stop. Every word you preach or teach that is not totally correct puts condemnation on you, and until perfected and authorized your teachings will not be true. Don't even talk about God or Christ until authorized by him. See To Religious Teachers and Preachers for more.

Strive to live a quiet and peaceful life. Seek peace with all men. The less conversation, the better. The less time with radio, TV, movies, books, magazines, newspapers, web surfing; the better. Whatever conversation you find yourself in, try to talk about love and family. Encourage and congratulate noble activities and good deeds that surface in conversation. Even compliment others for acts of kindness, repressing anger, and politeness. Don’t join unprofitable conversations, avoiding impurity and chatter spoken from pride (godless chatter), for they will increase your ungodliness. If the conversation turns to something profane, immediately leave; spare your ears, voice, and spirit.

A withdrawal from the world for a period of solitude can be helpful to see the world more clearly as it is. From the Lord: "withdraw from the world long enough to see the inconsideration and hate within it."

Pastimes are not harmful unless giving them up is painful. But, even if a pastime is not important to you, to others they are a major indulgence in their life. So, you may decide to, or be asked to, refrain from participating in them to: 1) avoid the appearance of endorsing them, thus being a good example to those who might indulge to their harm, and 2) not offend those of other religious persuasions, who think they are sinful - preventing them from hearing the truth as you practice it. Both cases illustrate the practice of being your brother's keeper.

See Coming Out of the World for more on what you need to do to succeed.

Simple Rules to Follow

Beyond your daily seeking through meditation, here are the starting rules that if you follow, you will do well.

• This was John the Baptist's simple message of repentance,  to get ready for Jesus and the Kingdom:
       Repent: think differently; change your mind, regretting your sins and changing your conduct. Matt 3:2
       Share from your excess with those who are without the necessities of life.
       Be honest in all your dealings, never exaggerating or overreaching anyone.
       Don't oppress people or frighten anyone, don't lie, don't want more, don't complain. Luke 3:10-14
• Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. (Jesus' #1)
  Set aside at least one hour for quiet time every day.
• Above all, don't swear (James #1; as in oaths: "I swear to tell the truth.."),
• Above all, love each other deeply, for love covers a multitude of sins (Peter's #1),
• Flee from sexual immorality, ( in Acts 15:28, from the Apostles' Council to the beginning Gentiles) .
  All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. 1 Cor 6:18.
• Whatever commands you receive while listening, record them, review them, and keep repenting.
• Prize your time and the Love of God to you. (Fox's #1)
• Don't worry, he loves you, doubt it not! (from him in meditation)
• And don't talk about God or Christ unless he tells you to. Wait until your words are from the Spirit.
• Enjoy the good things of this life with thanks and praise to our to great and wonderful God.

Certainly we have to make every effort to give up the unlawful practices: lying, cheating, swearing, drunkenness, stealing, railing, sexual immorality, etc.

But in our culture we are immersed in lawful pastimes - sports, TV, movies, web surfing, DVD's, music, concerts, theater, races, bodybuilding, shopping, blogging, video games, etc. So where do we begin? You can't give it all up at once, or you will be an empty shell. What you give up has to be led by him, one step at a time, with him giving more hunger for him each step of the way. Titus 2:11-14 says: grace will teach us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts - how to live soberly, righteously, godly. Certain things must be turned away from with all your strength, particularly those that lead you to sexual immorality. Pornography addiction is the disease of the age and wherever it appears, it must be eliminated: magazines, calendars, books, TV, movies, web surfing, etc. If you are addicted to web pornography, at least get the sites off your Favorites list. Make it more than one click to failure; get rid of your credit cards - anything to block your ease of depravity.

But for the non-harmful pastimes: know they eventually will probably have to go, but wait for the Lord to lead you in their denial, when he gives you strength to comply and more hunger for him to fill the void created when you give them up. As the Lord has told me: "I don't want people to give up everything at once, without me leading them and filling them along the way, or they will end up an empty shell."

Regarding sports, bodily exercise that keeps you healthy is important and should not be classified as a pastime, providing you are not obsessed with winning or resulting pride of appearance.

From A Guide to True Peace:

The love of liberty is one of the most dangerous passions of the heart. If we follow this propensity, instead of true liberty, it reduces us to slavery. As our passions are the worst of tyrants, if we obey them partially, we must always be in a perpetual strife and contest within; and if we entirely give ourselves up to them, it is horrid to think to what extremities they will lead; they will torment the heart, and, like a torrent, sweep all before them, and yet never be satisfied. True liberty is to be found only in him, whose truth shall set us free, and who shall make us experience that to serve him is to reign.

When our selfish nature is slain, we will receive the Spirit of Christ, so that we will be obedient in our love for God - and our obedience is by choice, God not having taken away our free will. Love never insists on its own way. But our love for God will make our obedience to his wishes to be the joy of our life.

Don't try to force others in your family to do the same seeking as you. If they are interested, great.  If your wife or husband goes along with you, that's even better; you have the best of fellowship. But don't pressure anyone. Once they see you change; once they see your peace; they may want to follow. Whatever commands you get are for you only; don't assume you have an obligation to enforce them on your family members.

As evidence of your desire for the Lord to lead you to a sinless state and the Kingdom, you will have to leave your deficit sect. To continue to meet with your deficit sect, is contradictory to the truth and to the true gospel requiring repentance. To continue to meet with any of the deficit sects is to fellowship with people who deny the hope of purity through repentance, union, holiness, and the Kingdom. Instead of repentance with forgiveness, their God only forgives with no help or power for further repentance to help them change. To stay, you will either lose your peace or lose your integrity. The voice of the Lord said, "They must withdraw from their sect to be taught;" and "withdraw from your sect, not out of pride and prejudice, but separate yourself long enough to see its false rulings." To be able to hear Christ's teachings, you must quietly withdraw from you deficit sect because he will not build you up on top of a false foundation. See 'Sect's Services' for more detail. Also see Isaac Penington's writing as to why coming out of Babylon is necessary.

A KEY teaching that we received from HIM in meditation is: to defer (yield your will) to others - our children, our husbands, our wives, our friends. Practicing this alone can result in your significant spiritual progress. You should do this in all cases, unless it is immoral, dangerous, or of major consequence. This should be especially easy for wives who are to be submissive to their husbands, and children who are to obey their parents. We who are His, are charged to put ourselves last. Everyone should defer to other's wishes, for by doing this, we put to death our selfish will, which wants to put ourselves first. Instead, we put Him and his ways first. Love does not demand its own way. 1 Cor 13:5

And to those who say, we are advocating salvation by "works," by listening and repenting, I say, go to the Light and have Him show you what is in your heart; then you will know how much grace you still need. Only God can change us - we are helpless in our fleshly deplorable state- only the unmerited favor of God can rid us of our conditions. It is by grace, and grace only through our faith in Christ that we are saved; but saved, means to die to the flesh and live to Christ - not by imputation, but in reality. You must share his sufferings, die daily, be buried in the baptism of death, and have him resurrected in you. The cross is the beginning. The cross is not "works," it is only obedience, and to those who oppose it, they are headed for destruction, for their god is their belly (lusts and affections).

Techniques

You just try to be quiet. Any thought is on the name of Jesus. It is not a mantra to be repeated. When you find yourself off in thoughts, return to the thought of his name and then try to be quiet. Each time you catch yourself off in thoughts, return to thinking of his name, but don't repeat it over and over. Quietness it the key. His name is access to power and to get your mind back to what you are waiting on, to hear his words or see his understandings. You can use techniques learned in different forms of meditations; just remember to bring your thoughts back to the name of Jesus.

Then those who feared the LORD spoke to one another,
      And the LORD listened and heard them;
      So a book of remembrance was written before Him
      For those who fear the LORD
      And who meditate on His name. Mal 3:16

I want to share with you the lessons we have learned in years of meditation. I meditate with my eyes closed. I know others who meditate with their eyes open. Eyes closed have the advantage that you see less to distract your mind; the disadvantage is that it is easier to go to sleep. George Fox walked all night alone; walking kept him awake while he listened and received understandings and commands from the Lord.

I reached a point in my meditations where I went to sleep within a few minutes, constantly. Even a lot of sleep did not remedy this problem. What did work, was to dig my thumbnail into the tips of my fingers; this pain (no injury) keeps me awake. Remember he said, the Kingdom of Heaven is seized by forceful men- meaning with maximum effort. If you are only mildly sleepy, praise for Him, when completed, can leave you sufficiently awake to continue your silence. Whatever works for you: coffee, COQ10 and with tea, walking, etc.

Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? Mat 26:40

Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. Mark 13:33

Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, [watching] blessed are those servants. Luke 12:37-38

Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. Luke 21:36

Rouse yourselves and keep awake, Rev 3:2

Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. 1 Thes 5:6

But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. 1 Peter 4:7

Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. Revelation 3:3

Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light. Ephesians 5:14

All of you must keep awake (give strict attention, be cautious and active) and watch and pray, that you may not come into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Matthew 26:41

Behold, I am going to come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake. Revelation 16:15

So blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gate, watching at the posts of my door.
For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD. Prov 8:34

I remember You upon my bed and meditate on You in the night watches. Psalm 63:6

Again, whatever time you choose, make it a daily habit. And if you get awakened in the night, know it is probably God, summoning you to come to Him then. Go immediately, and don't worry about sleep. This is also a very big cross to your will, which desperately, from a lifetime habit, wants to stay in bed and sleep. Paul got little sleep. George Fox got little sleep. For years, He tried to get me up in the middle of the night; I was resistant and stupid, so my progress was slow. I noticed when I traveled overseas, and got little sleep, I heard messages. Now, I get 3-5 hours of sleep - being awakened and clearly instructed to get up when awakened.

Pay close attention when awakening; you will often get a single statement from Him at this time. You can also sometimes hear his messages during the day in your normal routine.

The Lord has recently told me, "Many people are saying, 'I don't have time.' I don't ask you to drop whatever you are doing and come to meditate." He has never interfered with what I have to do in my life; he knows we are busy with our jobs, children, houses, community activities, etc. He only asks you put aside some time for him.

It is probably best to pick a time in the early morning; when it is quiet, before you have the day's activities swirling in you head. Get up an hour earlier than you previously did; use weekends for intense seeking, and make holidays holy days, by spending the whole day or as much as possible in silent waiting on the Lord. If you are busy, setting a time in the evening will be too often missed because of conflicts arising in your day's requirements or because you are too tired. Some can meditate regularly at night; my wife was like this and could meditate for several hours at night. Whatever time you choose, make sure you listen daily. It is best to meditate in a chair without a head rest. Sitting up straight, you have less possibility of falling asleep, though still possible; and he can more easily awaken you, because any sleep fallen into will not be as deep as would be in bed lying down. If you try to meditate propped up on pillows in bed, it is far too easy to slink down or just roll over into a laying down position.

Occasionally when I first sit down to begin my meditations, I immediately "know" something he is telling me about myself; I feel it deep within me; it is an infusion. There are no words, but the message is understood in words. Once, as I sat down, I felt very guilty about something I had recently done; as I sat there marveling at this sudden and unexpected guilt that came out of nowhere, I heard his voice say, "consider yourself convicted." As you think about what you feel and know, you can put it into words of thought. It is usually a conviction regarding something he wants you to repent of, which if you own and repent, you will greatly benefit. If it is something you have done wrong, you feel shame and guilt. If it is a command or direction, you feel a strong desire to do that thing.

I have also noticed that it helps to focus on feeling the right side of your body, head, hand, etc. It slows the thoughts down. This is a technique, from ancient Jewish meditations, where they tied phylacteries on their forehead and wrist before meditation to help their concentration. I just alternate between concentrating (just for 2-3 seconds at a time) on the feeling in my right hand and then switching concentration to the right side of my temple area, and back in cycles; breathing in while noticing  the feeling on the right side of my forehead, breathing out feeling my right hand. Just moving your eyes to the far right side can stop thoughts when in a swirl. When you are swirling in thoughts, try it. It might work for you; but there is no one way. Just sit quietly as best you can. "Be still and know that I am God." When you find yourself swirling in thoughts, simply return to thinking on his name; this will be a way to remind yourself of your purpose.

You will eventually notice that you have a thought and then you form the words to express it in your mind. Your thought has already been heard; you are wasting effort trying to express it. Just keep quiet, without forming words to express the feelings or thoughts that pop up, and you will have made a major step. Try not to form words in your mind, even if your thought is bad, just let it be. Your silent feelings and thoughts, without forming words, are the beginnings of worship in spirit and truth.

Start by thinking on the name of Jesus. As you progress and become more aware of Christ in you, you can shift to thinking on Christ within you. (per George Fox)
Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. Isa:26:8

Before waiting in silence for the Lord, I go over the Lord's prayer in my head. My wife uses it as an outline to expand the words of the prayer and form her praise to Him for several minutes, before going silent. It is a way to be reminded of the Father's majesty, his Kingdom to come in you, his will to be done by you on the earth, the request for your daily spiritual bread from heaven, his forgiveness to you, your obligation to forgive others, and to deliver you from evil. As you feel praise for him and his beautiful creation, express your wonder at his greatness and beauty. Praise him for giving us Jesus to show us the way, to purify us, and to bring us to him. Thank him for his drawing of you to him. Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name. Take a few minutes before starting your silent waiting; some may find it very helpful to get focused on their task - silence, to listen and watch for the Christ's Word and Light. Eventually this praise and thanksgiving will be without words, just thoughts and feelings not formed in words: the worship in spirit and truth. When you catch yourself swirling off in thoughts, return to thinking on the name of Jesus.

Occasional fasting and less sleep weaken the body and thereby strengthen the spirit. I drink water when fasting; to go without water for more than 3 days is extremely difficult and can be dangerous. There are records of very spiritually advanced people who were able to go without water for longer than three days. A juice fast is not really a fast; it is a diet. The Muslim fast of daytime fasting only, eating at night, is not a fast. A fast is to go without food entirely for some period of time. If you want to fast, but want to learn more about it or worry about health hazards, the definitive book on fasting by Dr. Herbert M. Shelton is available on the web, (click here). George Fox and many early Quakers frequently fasted. Paul fasted. Jesus fasted. Moses fasted. It is hard, but worthwhile. You may want to wait for the Lord to tell you "Do not eat." If you want to fast, fast. If you want to wait for instructions, wait. I have done both. Fasting in obedience to the Lord's command is easier to sustain.

Dryness

To often sit and hear or see nothing is part of the process, dryness. For long periods of time, I got one message per month. You will probably do better. You will also get encouragement. This comes just at the right time. He is trying to develop patience. He is developing faith; he speaks at exactly the right time. He knows what is best. Don't second guess Him. He is always there. He will never leave you; this is a scriptural promise. Long periods of hearing nothing are being in the spiritual desert. He told me once "keep crawling through the desert." Don't think the process is not working; know it is. Read John, Peter, Psalms, Isaac Penington, and George Fox for keeping up your hope. You will find your favorites. Whatever builds your hope, read it.

Miguel de Molinos has an outstanding, encouraging writing on meditation and the secret benefits of dryness.

In the beginning of your meditations, it may take much waiting on the Lord before you hear his voice, but your waiting is to be rewarded:

No ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. Isa 64:4
Let your mercy and loving-kindness, O Lord, be upon us, in proportion to our waiting and hoping for you. Ps 33:22
Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring.
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; Isaiah 40:31
So blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gate, watching at the posts of my door.
For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD. Prov 8:34-35
Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord. Psalm 27:14
Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes my salvation. Psa 62:1
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD;
we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. Isa 25:9
He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Heb 9:28.

These scriptures were a comfort to me when I began without hearing for many months. My early mistake was to expect guidance as to what ministry he wanted me to pursue and where to move to; questions that could not be answered, rather than simply sitting to be taught about him and myself according to what He, my creator, had decided I need to know.

Sometimes it is difficult to hear. And it is a challenge to learn to differentiate your own thoughts from his voice. Your thoughts have a train. One thought leads to another. You can stop and trace them backwards, seeing how one thought led to another.  When you hear from the Lord, there is no train. You can even hear from him with a thought that superimposes over your train of thought. It takes time, practice, and patience to learn to recognize the voice of the Lord. His words are always kind, gentle, peaceable, easily accepted, without sarcasm, without bitterness, without condemnation, without harshness, pure, clean, humble, wonderful. Eventually you will hear Him. And once you begin to hear, you will hear with increasing frequency. He has a soft voice. Sometimes, you will not hear a voice, you will just suddenly know something immediately. George Fox called this an 'opening.' An 'opening' can be expressed in words, but it is a feeling that infuses your entire being, as feeling surrounded or immersed in the immediate understanding.

Reaction to Conviction

He will tell you things about Himself. He will encourage you. He is kindness. He will tell or show you things about yourself; some will be things that are ugly. But since he is your friend, you know that he is showing them to you for your own good. So you listen and watch. And you don't run; stand before the Son of Man. And you repent of what he shows you. And sometimes he gives you commands. You are hearing the Word of God, the living Word. And hopefully you will obey his commands and show him you love him by being obedient.  Keep pen and paper nearby when meditating. Stop and write down those you get. Keep a notebook of commands and understandings received. He told us, "Why should I teach you if you don't write down what I tell you?" Then go right back into meditation. Review them periodically, and keep repenting. You will start changing; not as fast as you want to, but you will change. You will become more patient, less easily angered, kinder, more settled, more focused in life. Your desires for the things of the world will begin to melt away. As you follow his commands, your progress will accelerate. When you see your changes, still conscious of your decreasing failures, you will know, with gratitude, that he is changing you by grace - it is working! Your faith is increasing, because you hear the Word of God and because you are becoming more sure of what you hope for and more certain of Christ making changes in you, even though you don't yet see Him.

But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Eph 5:13-14

You have set our iniquities before You,  Our secret sins in the light of Your countenance. Psa 90:8

When you go to the teacher, at some point, you will see yourself wholly addicted to sex, as I saw myself. I could see how everything I did in life was to increase my prestige, power, influence, image, looks, etc. - all in hopes of making myself more attractive to the opposite sex. Until I was shown it, I would not have believed it.

That which shows him his sins, and troubled him for them, would show him his salvation;
for he who shows a man his sin, is the same who takes it away. George Fox

When meditating, and you are shown something ugly about yourself by the Light, don't draw back; realize it is the Light showing you your condition, and He is doing this to help you be rid of it and to become a better person; and that Christ has died for you so that you need not panic. Don't think about all you will lose, and draw away, but remain to focus on the Light that shows you your condition. And then, just when you don't expect it, strength will come; and whatever you have been shown, you will have strength to be different from then on. You may not see the Light. You may only see what the light is showing you. That is all you need. If you can't see the Light, just focus on the fact that the Light is showing you your condition. The Lord told me, "If a vision or understanding makes you sad, look at the cross." This is what George Fox called the first step to peace; he also said this process, repentance in the Light, "is the cross."

The Lord has told me: "there is no evil that I have not already had in front of my hands and eyes."
So when you see yourself, don't think you are the most evil person ever to live; you're not.
When you see the extent of your evil, as the Lord said: "everyone thinks he is the worst sinner to ever live."

This is how to kill (deaden, deprive of power) the evil desire lurking in your members: sexual vice, impurity, sensual appetites, unholy desires, and all greed and covetousness, for that is idolatry (the deifying of self and other created things instead of God). Col 3:5

From George Fox's Journal:

This is the word of the Lord God to you all; what the light does make manifest and discover, as temptations, distractions, confusions; do not look at the temptations, confusions, corruptions; but at the light which discovers them and makes them manifest; and with the same light you may feel over them, to receive power to stand against them. The same light which lets you see sin and transgression, will let you see the covenant of God, which blots out your sin and transgression, which gives victory and dominion over it, and brings into covenant with God. For looking down at sin, corruption, and distraction, you are swallowed up in it; but looking at the light, which discovers them, you will see over them. That will give victory, and you will find grace and strength; there is the first step to peace. That will bring salvation; and by it you may see to the beginning, and the "Glory that was with the Father before the world began;" and come to know the seed of God; which is the heir of the promise of God, and of the world which has no end; and which bruises the head of the serpent, who stops people from coming to God. That you may feel the power of an endless life, the power of God which is immortal, which brings the immortal soul up to the immortal God, in whom it does rejoice. So in the name and power of the Lord Jesus Christ, God Almighty strengthen you.

When you listen to the voice and obey commands heard or understood from the Light, you are acknowledging this Teacher within you as Christ; you have received and acknowledged Christ. Just like when Christ asked Peter, "whom do you say I am," and he said: 'Thou art Christ, the Son of the Living God.' Mat. 16:15-18. Christ said, Upon this rock I will build my Church - the rock solid understanding that he who speaks to you is the Son of God, which the gates of Hell cannot prevail against.

For everyone who comes to Me and listens to My words and does them, I will show you what he is like: He is like a man
building a house, who dug and went down deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood arose, the torrent
broke against that house and could not shake or move it, because it had been securely built or founded on a rock. Luke 6:47-8
He builds his Church on a rock solid foundation. He builds himself in you on a rock solid foundation. 

And if you come to him, listen, and obey what you are told to do, you will have a foundation which takes you past the gates of Hell with its storms and tribulations. And when you receive the light the persecution intensifies, just as it did with George Fox; his temptations and opposition increased dramatically. Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Heb 10:32

This quietness process is an essential part of the mystical, missing cross of christianity. Christ told us what we must do to follow him: "you must deny yourself and take up your cross and follow me daily;" and "he who does not bear his cross cannot be my disciple;" and: "When you bear (produce) much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine." With the cross there is increasing peace, love, joy, gentleness, faith, purity, Holy Spirit, and death of self. Without the cross, there is only the old man of flesh and ego with dullness and disillusionment. No cross, no death, no rebirth.

See Silent Prayer on Sidebar for more explanation of the process.

The Lord's Watching Over Us

Don't look to the Lord for specific answers to one of your worldly problems; he knows your problems and will guide you if necessary, or he will fix the problems without you recognizing his work. Don't waste meditation time trying to get answers to specific questions in your life. Continue through life making the best decisions you know how, and everything will go well.

While we are seeking, the creator of the universe is watching over us, protecting us, planning for us, moving the world to our benefit, and always there for us. With this assurance, we know that everything that comes our way is his will for us; and whatever happens, even if it appears to be a problem at the time, we know as it is written, all things work together for good, for those who love God and are called according to his purpose; and because we keep his commands, he knows we love him. So we know that everything that happens to us has been willed by God, to help us grow, and we have a peace that is based on the love of God to us. We can cast all of our worries and fears upon him, and depend on him to work everything out to our benefit. We have confidence that he is working for us, even when we can't see how it is happening; we know he controls the whole universe, and to work our life to his union, is effortless for him.

Do not take this watching over you to be safety for participating in dangerous activities by choice. Remember Christ was tempted to cast himself from the top of the temple, with the assurance that the angels would catch him; he replied, 'you shall not tempt the Lord your God.' From the voice of the Lord as a warning to everyone: drunkenness can make you so loose that you kill yourself. Drunkenness can result from drugs or alcohol.

He has to show us each and every problem we have, many that are hidden, and lead us (by moving the world around us if necessary) to feeling the pain of our problems - pain so great that when we are tempted, instead of a trigger to fail, it becomes a trigger to succeed. The sooner you understand that everything that happens to you is arranged, the sooner you will be at peace; i.e., the sooner you can accept the way people are treating you so terribly is so you can learn to forgive. This life is an illusion. God is far more powerful and at work around you far more than you can imagine. For those who he loves and calls, he controls everything around them. (This arrangement of circumstances only occurs for those whom he loves and calls.) And if you have a deep hunger, he loves you and has called you. The hunger is his. It is his way of drawing you to him. So you will starve and mourn, and starve and mourn.  But you will eventually be filled and comforted. It works. Trust Him. He created you. He is in you. He knows you much better than you do. He will change you to be like Him, leading you to purity and then to union with Him in the Kingdom within, where you walk by the Light of God.

He told me, " live in the fortress of faith where it doesn't matter if someone gives you a kiss or hits you with a baseball bat," knowing everything that happens to me is totally under his control and direction. So if I get hit with a baseball bat, he is teaching me the necessity of forgiving, to ignore it, despite the pain suffered and wrongness of the person wielding the bat. Your life is an obstacle course, designed by God, for you to crawl over and through, learning to forgive and love despite the pain and injustice. This life is a boot camp to produce a soldier of love, whose weapon is the sword of the Spirit, the living word of God. When you realize it is God who has allowed that person to be rude, ugly, and painful to you, you can easily forgive them because they are just an obstacle of potential resentment, whose offense is to be overlooked, (or if not overlooked, to produce the pain of resentment ), thus being used by God to help you spiritually progress.

Do not take his watching over you as justification for going into debt, thinking God will bail you out and wants you to enjoy life on borrowed money; for it is written, "owe no man any debt, other than love." If your pride gets you into some kind of worldly trouble, he will let you fall, to humble you; for it is written, "pride comes before shame." But, if humbled, it is his love for you that is still at work disciplining you; just keep seeking with added confidence of  having been disciplined. For more on debt, see George Fox's Letter 200.

And as we are seeking, we have his promises to fall back on and be reassured, we have his words of encouragement whispered to us as we quietly seek him, we have his commands to comfort us that we are indeed under orders, we have his discipline to remind us that he loves us and will not let us fail, and we have the changes he makes in us as proof - as long as we keep coming back to Him and seeking him in solitude.

Ministry of Condemnation

If you make mistakes or commit sins while seeking, (and you will), just regret them, resolve to do better, and forget them. Learning is why we are here. Your mistakes teach you. Forget about committing "an unpardonable sin;" that referenced people seeing Christ's miracles and attributing them to demons - how could they ever seek him thinking he had a demon? That's the unpardonable sin, rejecting the Holy Spirit as a demon; for the duration of your mistake. Yes, it is possible even today to think the Holy Spirit is a demon, especially in meditation; you can mistake the conviction of the Holy Spirit as "the accuser of the brethren," assuming you are already a "brethren," which you are not until you have been purified and made one by Christ. Fox called this whole process of conviction, the Ministry of Condemnation. To think the convicter is the accuser in unpardonable, because you will run rather than stand and focus on the light which shows you your condition; stand still and focus on the Light that is showing you your condition, and finally strength will come, and you will be different, stronger in that area from then on. But if you run, you can go back, and not run; you get as many chances as you will take. When the Light shows you a problem, it is never in an upbraiding manner; it is gentle, immediately recognizable, but shameful - shame like a when a friend or a kind father points out a fault you didn't want to know about - but not harsh or critical - gentle, easily accepted, generating regret and sorrow on your part. After you are purified, you benefit from the Ministry of Life and Righteousness, but until then, you must be under the Ministry of Condemnation through the cross. For if the ministration of condemnation [be] glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. 2 Cor 3:9

When man decided to eat from the tree of knowledge so he could judge good and evil like God, he became a selfish spirit removed from the image, direction, and presence of God. Each of us makes our own decisions with our mind as to what is good for us and what is bad for us. We all make different decisions based on what we think we want. Different people have different standards of conduct and behavior. We are selfish creatures looking for ways to increase our pleasures and comforts; we are like beasts on the prowl looking for their next meal. The Holy Spirit must show us how captive we are to our lusts, pleasures, habits, anger, pride, and self-gratification - and how this self-centered behavior is at the expense of others around us. The word and light show us the defects in our heart, one at a time, exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart. With our regret and sorrow for conditions exposed by the Holy Spirit, we receive help from the Holy Spirit to change. This conviction and condemnation of our beastly nature is the Ministry of Condemnation. When we have been sufficiently purged or purified of our selfish, sinful nature, then we receive the Ministry of Life or additional spirit from Christ; until finally we are restored to the image, direction, and presence of God.

So first learn the ministry of condemnation in yourselves,
that life may arise, before ministry in the spirit is known,
which preaches peace by Jesus Christ, where there is no strife.
Therefore wait to know the time of silence and mind that which condemns you.
From Fox's Letter 145.

From Letter 58: The teachers without exalt the carnal mind, but the teacher within destroys it.

Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. Rom 8:7

From Letter 245

And as your ears are attentive to the Lord's voice, that speaks from heaven,
iniquity's mouth is stopped in you, the throne of iniquity is thrown down in you;
that is, the wicked spirit and power, where iniquity sits;
and the chambers of imagery are thrown down in you,
where all thoughts and imaginations are.

For the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth. Gen 8:21

So that we lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One), 2 Cor 10:5. So that we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart, 1 Cor 2:16. We must put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness, Eph 4:22-24. This does not mean we continue to think with a new set of rules we have learned from the Bible. No; the carnal mind, which is inimical to God, must be destroyed so that we do not think for ourselves any longer. Instead as a new creature, we rely on the promptings received from God, just like Christ did when he walked the earth; as he said:

I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true;
and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him. John 8:26

the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.
And I know that His command is everlasting life.
Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.  John 12:49-50

the Son is able to do nothing of Himself (of His own accord);
but He [the son] is able to do only what He sees the Father doing,
for whatever the Father does is what the Son does in the same way. John 5:19

I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous,
because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me. John 5:30

So, even Christ did not make his own decisions. Notice, Jesus said he only did the will of the Father, not his own. In Mat. 7:21, Jesus said: Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. So here Jesus tells us what is necessary to go to heaven - to do nothing of ourselves - to only say what we hear the father tell us to say- to only do what the Father shows us to do - to only judge how we are told to judge by the Father. So, we are not to think for ourselves - we are to only follow the promptings of the Father. We must have our carnal mind destroyed to the point that we speak and act from the promptings of the Spirit of God; this is the end of obedience - to think, speak, and act according to God's promptings. You have probably prayed the Lord's prayer a thousand times, saying "thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven," without a clue as to how it could be done. Now you know what it takes - and it is not easily accomplished - only with dedication to seek the Kingdom of God as your first priority, with perseverance, and with obedience to every command you hear.

If Christ did nothing except as he was prompted by the Father, how could we possibly think we could act independently, when we are far less than Christ? We also must have our carnal minds destroyed to the point that we only speak and act from the promptings of the Spirit of God. Perhaps now you are beginning to see the wisdom of not even speaking of Christ or God, unless you are specifically ordered by the Holy Spirit what to say, to whom to say it, and when to say it.

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.1 Peter 4:11 

Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man [forsake] his thoughts; Isa 55:7

Those who follow their own brain will weep and mourn; there will be great pain. Voice of the Lord 3/04/08

In a sermon delivered to a Women's Meeting in Barbados, George Fox was describing the Sabbath rest of the Christian, being a rest into Christ Jesus, saying: "think not your own thoughts, for in Christ we are atop that nature where evil thoughts are, that nature [having been] taken away by Christ. So you should not think your own thoughts, do your own works, [or] speak your own words." At spiritual maturity, our thoughts, words, and works must come from God's leading.

A wise man once said, "all thought is worry, which is lack of faith."  All thought is worry or plan for the future, still worry; and worry is lack of faith. Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? Mat 6:27

Man, who originally followed his creator in obedient love, became a rebel to decide his own way, taking thought ,thinking and judging what is good and bad for himself. When man is restored into the image of God, he ceases to make his own thoughts and decisions; instead returning to reverent, loving obedience to his creator, of him and of the universe. Part of this restoration is to destroy the rebellious, self-seeking, self-gratifying mind. This is a lengthy process for most. And as the mind is destroyed, the Lord's guidance fills the void. As your meditations become deeper in silence, you will occasionally feel a quiet peace, a stilling of the mind; - and then remember the promise is for peace forever - a quietness and confidence forever - the harvest of righteousness. It is only when you taste this peace that you can begin to understand that you have lived under condemnation all of your past life; it is like a hammer has been striking your head all your life, but until it stops, you never knew it could be different.

To repeat: when our selfish nature is slain, we will receive the Spirit of Christ, so that we will be obedient in our love for God - and our obedience is by choice, God not having taken away our free will. Love never insists on its own way. But our love for God will make our obedience to his wishes to be the joy of our life.

Letter 60 .- To Friends, to keep in the fear of the Lord.

Every particular, mind that which is pure of God in you,
to guide you up to God, and to keep you in the fear of the Lord,
that you may receive refreshment from God alone in yourselves,
and grow up in the inward man,
nourished and strengthened by that which is immortal.
And delight in that which shows you the deceit of your hearts,
and judges that which is contrary to God,
and be obedient to that which is pure;
so you will see the Lord God present with you, a daily help,
his hand always ordering of you,
and as a shepherd always keeping the dogs from his lambs,
whom he feeds in green pastures, and waters with his heavenly dew of mercy,
who makes them all fruitful.
The cry of want and poverty shall be no more heard in the land of the living,
but joy, gladness, and plenty.
The wearied soul, that has lain in the pit and in the mire,
and lived in the clouds of temptation, and cried out for want of the Lord,
shall cry plentiful redemption, and say, God is our king,
who filled heaven and earth,
and the voice of our king is heard in our land.
So fare you well in the Lord!
And the Lord God Almighty keep you and preserve you in his mighty power.

George Fox

And this cross is suffered in private, outside any assembly of believers.

For when the blood of animals is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin, the victims' bodies are burned outside the limits of the camp. Therefore Jesus also suffered and died outside the gate in order that He might purify and consecrate the people through His own blood and set them apart as holy.

Let us then go forth to Him outside the camp [at Calvary], bearing the contempt and abuse and shame with Him.
Heb 13:11-13

From Molinos' Spiritual Guide: "The Lord said to a soul,