Phil Rowlands

Hello, my friends!

Feeling safe, I think, is one of the most enviable and sought-after feelings one can have, next to love. I believe, obviously, love is paramount here, as we know, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear...” (1 John 4:18). We can be in a loving, close-knit family or community but still be afraid in some ways. All you have to do is look around the globe to see that in spades, as the world is a pretty insidious place and very uncertain, to say the least.

I volunteer for a homeless outreach a few times a month and have had my own little outreaches over the years as well. Most of what I have picked up as the primal necessity for these precious people is finding safe places to dwell. Of course, they have many needs, as diverse as the uniqueness of all the individuals that call the streets their home. But essentially, rough sleepers, or urban campers as some identify, are always looking for a little corner somewhere, preferably with a couple of walls, to feel safe at night.

There isn't a whole lot we can do to try and ensure safety as human beings on this earth. Our physical safety can be swept away in an instant by a hurricane, a tornado, a tsunami, a bushfire, a war, a financial meltdown, sickness, illness, and the list could go on for pages, really, on how unsafe we can become physically, with obviously some emotional and mental challenges thrown in to navigate as well, so safety isn't a given.

I think we can all agree, safety on any physical level isn't guaranteed in life's journey, even as a saint, which would oppose the doctrine of some prosperity preachers. We weren't guaranteed an easy life when given the guarantee of salvation through the grace of God, but we were guaranteed something far more precious than well-lined-up ducks, day in, day out.

Firstly, the Holy Spirit has put a seal on all the sons and daughters, a deposit if you like, and Jesus will come for what He purchased with His blood, either en masse in a rapture or piecemeal as saints fall asleep in Christ Jesus. This seal is the signifying mark that we are His, we are the Father's, and He is the pure source of love and safety that we won't find anywhere in the natural. You may have a loving family or loving friends, etc., but that love and safety, firstly, isn't anywhere near as loving as your Father is regarding you, an infinite love, and secondly, any feelings of safety you may have are amiss in comparison to how safe we are in the Father's arms.

Of course, experiencing and being the beneficiaries of love and safety in our human experiences are delightful and pursued at great lengths; they truly are wonderful. But the sad reality is that many saints put their pursuit of feeling loved and safe according to the human experience well before that of seeking that of their Creator, their Father in Heaven. He is the most doting Dad you will ever have, glory to God for that truth.

In order to feel safe and loved by our Father in Heaven, you need to understand two basic truths about Him. His love for you isn't dependent on your behaviour, and your security in salvation, as in your position in the kingdom of God as His son or daughter, is 100% safe. Being His child, and adopted and grafted in, is an irrevocable gift. You were once made corruptible, but now you are made as an incorruptible new creation, Amen.

A real shortcut to meditating your way into living out of these assurances is to develop a Heavenly mindset. The Word says that we are aliens on this earth, that we are a different species than the species we were when we were born of Adam, but now born of God. Our time here on earth is fleeting; it's a tiny single atom compared to all the atoms in the universe. Often you will hear saints say with some earthly anguish, “Come, Lord Jesus, Come,” as they endure the challenges of life on earth, knowing full well that there is a paradise that awaits. And I've been there in a way; you'll have to read my blog on “Being in Love with the Mysteries.” Full disclosure, I can't remember the what in the dream, but just all of the emotions, about how good it all was.

Developing a relationship with the One who loves us, and in fact loved you first, from before the foundations of the world, again, being in a wonderful deep relationship with Jesus is where we find this remarkable and deeply passionate love and feelings of safety. Knowing you are loved and safe in Christ has to come by a revelation of the same, a revelation of how wonderfully secure you are and how gloriously and abundantly loved you are.

For many years, I attended churches where their doctrine was built on what man can do with God's help, not what God can do with man's help, and often He does stuff purely via His heavenly hosts, and we haven't done a thing. He's good like that. Our futures on this earth are according to His plan and purpose, and that alone. We can make all the plans we like, but ultimately, it is He who will direct our steps. We aren't robots; Jesus wasn't. But He delighted in doing His Father's will. And I believe that is how we are meant to live, just being delighted in doing His will.

It's often said that believing in eternal security will cause someone to sin more or do whatever they want. Well, in my case, it has been the absolute opposite. I once was a drug and sex addict, and now I don't even drink. I've been celibate for 13 years, and I am more in love with walking in the Spirit now than I have ever been, and yet I believe my salvation is assured and not based on any of my behaviour, and that God will love me no more or no less regarding that.

I believe there will be an inheritance and rewards for those who live out of His will as saints, in contrast to carnal living and walking of the flesh. But again, still, this does not compel me to live the way I do. I live this way because it's my birthright to live this way; it's my identity to live this way. It's the working out through the members of my body what God has so gloriously put within me.

Be blessed today, my friends. Put on the garment of praise daily, moment by moment. Believe in the One who came for you, who justified you, who made you complete in the Father's eyes, without spot or blemish, without rot or decay. You are the beloved of the Father, and His life in you is your safety. His life in you was His heavenly kiss upon you, saying, “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Feel loved and safe in your Father's arms today, and rejoice in that, even though the world folds up around us, even though the grating of this world pricks our flesh, rejoice, rejoice, for He is good. He's a good, good Father, a loving and safe, glorious Father.

Phil