Secret Place - Holy Ghost
Psalms 91:1 - He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I usually feel very privileged and honoured when people share their secrets with me. I mean "their own" secrets, not those of others (gossip)! This is because it's an indication or proof of trust. No one opens their secret to someone they don't trust. It also put a level of responsibility upon me as a confidant. It means I am a custodian of someone's vital and sensitive information and cannot afford to be frivolous with what they've kept in my charge. It is also very interesting to know that every individual, group or multitude of people have one secret or another that only a few selected individuals are privy to. Most nations of the world have a secret service agency - CIA, KGB, MI5, etc- which consist of few individuals with sworn and proven allegiance to their nations. These secret service agents are exposed to certain level of national secrets because of the trust the state has in them.
In order to keep secrets secret it is usually shared in a private place. A place of limited access.
In our generation where secrets have become obsolete. With the internet being littered by what should ideally be intimate secrets. So the whole world now knows what you ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner because of twitter, Facebook, bbm, etc. Even the secret parts of your bodies are no longer secret. You post pictures that show the world parts of your body that are meant to be secret and expect to be valued as a lady.. Ohhhh! I just touched on a raw nerve there! Yes! Pull your pants and skirts up! Cover your nakedness!
I stumbled on some fundamental truths from the bible passage above that I would love to share with someone.
1. "HE" that dwelleth.. Long before now I had thought, and quoted this verse wrongly. I had for whatever reason quoted it as "They that dwelleth.." Instead of "He that dwelleth.." Now there's a big difference between the two! "They" is a plural term used to represent more than one, a group or multitude of people. It is generally used for more than one whilst "he" is used for just one person. It is vital to know that for you to have access into heavenly secrets you would have to go alone. He that dwelleth.. not "They"! Most of us want to access the secrets of God and His kingdom but we don't like being alone. I'm not sure if anyone would share their secrets with me if I bring another person into it. Jesus Christ would leave the multitude and even his closest disciple to be with God ALONE. Alone means all one! No distractions from phone or any other social network access.
2. ..Dwelleth.. To dwell mean to stay on something or somewhere for awhile, to abide in a location, to spend more time on something or in a place. Dwelling is different from visiting or passing through. In our day and age of microwave Christianity, no one wants to dwell. Everyone wants go just come in and get whatever they can and go. Drive-by or Drive-through Christianity! No commitment! We have turned out preachers into performers. Sit in our highly exalted seats with our legs crossed and analyse what the preacher or minister is doing. If they don't bring the kind of excitement we desire we call them dry. If they preach or minister too long we get upset and don't come again! How am I going to get you out of a mess you've been in for 20years of your life in 45mins?! ..all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Job 14:14.
2. My emphasis today is on "..the secret place of the most High.." It is interesting to know that the most high has a secret place. A place of restricted access. A place where He hides His secrets from ordinary eyes. This place is more a spiritual location than a geographical one. It is a place where decisions that manifest in the physical are taken. God let Abraham into this secret place in Genesis 18:17-19 when He shared with Abraham what He was about to do to Sodom. Secret place! Jesus took Peter, James and John to the mount of transfiguration and showed them secret things. Secret place! Not only would God share His secrets with you in the secret place, He would keep your own secrets as well. I know you are missionary Wilson and Evangelist Fireman and you don't have no secrets but some of us have things that we can't put on Facebook, BBM or Twitter! There are things in your life that if it ever became public you would lose the respect and audience of your followers. You know church folks are mean! They never forgive their own. Check out every church leader or pastor whose secrets came out in the open and watch how his colleagues in ministry would react to him. Even when God has forgiven him we would still not allow him into our churches. His own congregation and followers would turn and find another shepherd for themselves. "Why are you still going to that man's church? Didn't you hear he is an adulterer!" "Hmmm.. I'm not so sure about the anointing on that Pastor anymore! His anger problem was exposed by his wife". Unfortunately we have killed too many men of God by our expectations. We expect that they are perfect and would never be tempted or would never sin. Sadly most of these men (who are men of like passion like you and I) live their life trying to live up to our expectations of them. So, even when they are drowning in sin they dare not share it with anyone! We've made them supermen that are not fallible so when we discover their faults we are so disappointed that we can not forgive them. Secret places! Forgive me but I'm still working towards perfection! I still tell a lie once in a while, I still get very angry and want to give someone a "piece of my mind"! Forgive me but I still feel the urge to do certain things when I'm with my fiancée! I know you're Holy through and through but please pray for me as I'm still going through my go through! Even our men of God don't help themselves at all. They want to keep their superman status and feel a sense of false security and importance. Secret places!
Now the problem with the secret place is that it is the place of responsibility. God reveals people's secrets to you not for you to use against them when you want. He lets you in on certain sensitive information because of the trust He has in you that you'd be responsible enough to keep the secrets. It is usually a weight on me when people share their secrets with me because I understand that: 1. God enabled them to open up to me for a reason 2. I must do something with the information that would bring improvement in the life of the person. 3. Whatever it is I do with the information I must be careful not to betray the trust imposed in me by God and the person involved.
People have lost trust in church and in God because of the irresponsibility of some men of God who decides to use what's meant to be another person's secret as their sermon! Some deacons have chased people from church because they had to show off their knowledge of people by discussing member's secrets with others in the open! Secret Place! So that brother shared with you his struggle and you go and "gist"with your friends at the hairdressers how that brother can't control himself! Secret places! So you found out that the sister in choir had not always been sister Agnes all her life.. She had had some "Loose Lucy" experience and you "just warned the brother interested in her about her escapade"! God is watching you in HD. Be careful! I'm not sure you would want your own secrets discussed the way you discuss others! Secret Place!
For the wonderful women also, you know those times that you have those arguments with your hubby and you really feel the urge to shut him up! You bring up a secret he's shared with you and you slam it right in his face! Hmmm.. Yes, you've shut him up! But you might just have shut him up for life! You win the fight ( the argument) but you lose the battle ( your marriage)! Many men also have broken the trust and consequently the hearts of their women. Remember how she opened up her life to you! How she told you all her secrets and family dysfunction. You took advantage of her vulnerability took whatever it is you wanted from her, sucked her dry and turn again to abuse her! God is watching you in 3D!! Most children are afraid to share their secrets with parents because you keep reminding them of their mistakes every time they do something wrong. Why are you taking over the ministry of the devil ( accuser of brethren)? Everytime you use their past secrets against their present challenge you lose their trust! Stop it! Secret place!
Everyone needs a secret place where they can be open without being afraid, naked but not ashamed. Everyone needs a place to hide from these nosy prying eyes. Especially in our internet world where everything is up in the public eyes. God provided such for Adam and Eve in the garden until the serpent came to expose them. Jesus had the garden of gethsemane where he broke down before his trusted friends. Where is your own secret place? Where can you be yourself without the pressure of trying to live up to people's expectation? With who can you share your deepest secrets? I personally have people in my life who I share my secrets with. They've proven over time how reliable and responsible they are. Let me let you in on one of my own secrets. I test people with a little bit of information that might not be too harmful to me or my course if it gets out. If they are able to keep the little one then I can give them some more until I'm comfortable to share my life with them without fear. It has worked very well but it has also backfired at some times. It just shows that every man as long as they are still on this side of eternity are fallible and liable to disappoint. Which means the most secured secret place is with The Lord.
Finally, this scripture ends with a very profound and wonderful benefit of dwelling in His secret place...shall (definitely) abide (dwell perpetually, rooted) under (covered by or beneath) the shadow (impression created by a real object standing in front of light)of the Almighty (all powerful, all in all, infinite in power). This is the assurance we have that when we dwell in His secret place we are sheltered from the scourging tongues of men. I know we use this scripture for physical protection but I dare say it is deeper than that. If we are under the shadow of the Almighty it means the Almighty Himself is standing over us to cover us physically, mentally spiritually and even emotionally.
Where is your secret place? Is it with your friends, Facebook, twitter or with the Most high?
