Alignment

I personally believe that alignment is a very pertinent word for the Body of Christ at this time; the word means “the state of adjustment or proper positioning”. If you were to take two twenty pound dumbbells and place one in each hand and carry them in front of you with your arms extended and then carry them at your sides in right proportion and walk the same distance you will notice a great difference in how much effort and energy one method would require above the other. I was in Guatemala and the Missions team that was with me found it very interesting that the woman carried their laundry baskets on their head at a fairly fast pace with no strain whatsoever. The Missionary informed us that from an early age they learn this practice, he said it involved developing their neck muscles and learning to walk in right alignment. It appears from the weariness on people’s faces, a fatigue that seems to be evident by their words and their actions that we need to consider our alignment in God in contrast to what we are facing and how we are responding to these things. The Prophet Haggai in chapter 1 verse 6, this is my paraphrase “you have planted so much seed and you harvest so little; you eat but ye you are always hungry; you drink but always thirsty; you have clothes on but yet you are always cold; you work so hard and when you get paid it seems like you placed your money in a bag with holes,” God says consider your ways. The people were misaligned and God begins to disclose to them the issue.

Haggai 1:7-9, 12-15

7“Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways. 8Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD. 9You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the LORD of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house.
12Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. 13Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the LORD’s message, “I am with you, declares the LORD.” 14And the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts, their God, 15on the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.

The alignment begins by first of all assessing what area of my life is out of alignment. I must ask is anything in my life that is not functioning according to what Gods word says, anything that is out of order, anything I pour into and yet I feel so frustrated and depleted because it is not producing what is should.

The second thing I must do is find alignment, for a believer in Christ that alignment comes from the word of God. In 2 Chronicles we find right alignment for the Church, If my people, the alignment humble themselves, pray, seek my face, turn from their wicked ways then I will hear, forgive and heal. If I am having trouble with my mind and worry, Philippians 4:6-8 tells us not to worry about anything and pray about everything and the peace of God that is beyond our understanding shall keep (guard) our heart and mind through Christ Jesus. Then he says these are the things you need to think upon, what is true, honest, just, lovely, good report. I heard a very powerful quote this morning “until we change the way we look at things the things we look at will never change”, that’s right alignment.

In Ezekiel’s vision of the river, he is beckoned to go deeper into the river and there are different levels which are mentioned, the ankles, knees, the waist and then the river was so deep the prophet could no longer stand on his feet. In correlation with those depths I want to apply it to alignment.Proper alignment has to do with positioning. We must position ourselves properly in relationship to the word of God; I must submit myself to the word. So in my positioning I am aligning myself under Gods authority, my standing or positioning represents the waters to the ankles.

The knees, when exercising at the gym depending on the weight you are lifting there are certain exercises that require for you to bend your knees in order to take the pressure off of certain parts of the body especially your lower back, so it is with prayer. Prayer is the place where the pressure of or the weight of the things you carry is taken off of you and placed on God, “cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you: he shall never allow you righteous child of God to be moved.” (Psalms 55:22)

The water to the waist in the alignment process speaks of going beyond. In the world of sports groaning is a sound that is made which seems to indicate that they are reaching deep within you can hear this groan in tennis matches and also weight lifting. Watching the NBA finals there were moments in the closing of the game with less than a minute left where you knew every play and second was significant and crucial. This alignment that God wants to bring is a crucial place, everything counts, there is place where prayer becomes a groaning because of the intensity of the seeker and the serious of the hour concerning what must be attained.

Beyond is the place where it is so deep you are no longer standing on your own feet but the waves of waters carry you. When there is a proper alignment there is a place in God where you still have to bear what has been placed upon you but it is not affecting you because what you carry is carried by the God who carries you.