He carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet-colored animal, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.  Revelation 17:3  WEB

Her children were small and needed their mother and father around to care for them. But she was working in a job that wanted to keep her busy. They kept her doing things for the business long after quitting time. They gave her things to do at home and the weekend. Then, because the institution was a religious one, they wanted her to go on retreats. She was asked to leave her toddlers and the husband she hardly got to see at home. They wanted her to go away with her colleagues to attend extra religious gatherings. One of these was to a small chapel in the wilderness where the church took them to pray. What does being carried away in Spirit mean to us?

People will go to great lengths to act godly or say they are tuned to God. But God is not in our appearance. If we look busy or overly religious, it will never mean that we walk any closer to Him than another person. God is a spirit. Those who truly worship Him will tune their spirit to His. This may take time but will be time alone with Him spent in cultivating our relationship with Him. Not just time devoted to religious activities that are done to look religious. Some people are carried away in Spirit to see and learn things directly from God. But these people are not the ones forced into doing so. They are the ones whose hearts were looking for the Lord so intently that He was pleased to show Himself to them. We could be given great revelations of God today if we humble ourselves and turn to Him. Let´s ask to be carried away in Spirit!

Dear Lord,

Help us to get past rituals and going through the motions. Let us get to where our spirits can be fed by Your Spirit, we pray!

Amen