In the stillness, in the quiet, in the waiting, I come.
Press in to My presence.
Press in.
Don't hold back. Don't withdraw. Don't second guess.
Give Me your first "yes!" Your only "yes!" Your best "yes!"
YES = Yield your Entire Soul
Yield your entire soul to ME; More than Enough.
~I AM More than Enough~
Yield to the pruning. 
Yield to the refining.
Yield to ME.

Words from the Holy Spirit; penned by my hand.

In the Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, the word yield means to bear or bring forth as a natural product; to produce or furnish as a return; to produce as a return from an expenditure or investment. It also means to give up possession of on claim or demand; to surrender or relinqush to the physical control of another; and to surrender or submit (oneself) to another.

On this particular morning, I believe that the Holy Spirit was telling me, and reminding all of us, to yield our souls to God so that we can yield a return on our investment. There’s a God-promise attached to yielding – He promises a return on our investment – He promises that we will bear good fruit!

In Joshua 1:1-9, we read about God’s promise to Joshua for being faithful to Him, and the fruit of yielding to God and not to fear. In this passage of scripture, the Lord gives Joshua permission to enter the promised land. Joshua had seen the promised land 40 years earlier but because of the people’s unbelief, they had to wander in the wilderness. How hard it must have been for Joshua to remain faithful while awaiting the promise; especially since it wasn’t his unbelief that kept him from it. (Joshua was one of the few spies who had seen the promised land and were not afraid to go in and possess it.)

Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. Joshua 1:3 (NKJV)

No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Joshua 1:5 (NKJV)

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:8-9 (NIV)

In Joshua 1:8-9 we read that meditating on the Word of God (the Bible) day and night produces a return on our investment; it produces a prosperous and successful life. It also comes with a promise that we can be strong and courageous in whatever God calls us to do because He promises to be with us wherever we go. But to step into that promise, we must first yield our hearts (souls) to God.

In Joshua 24:23 the people were admonished to throw away their foreign gods and to yield their hearts to God. We are called to do the same. To remove the idols in our lives (anything that sets itself up against God in our lives) and to yield our souls to God. The removal of idols in our lives is a requirement for stepping FULLY into God’s promises for us.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for they are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. Galatians 5:16-17 (ESV)

Galatians 5:16-18 tells us to yield to the Holy Spirit and not the flesh. In fact, yielding to is synonymous to walking with – daily walking with God, surrendering our fleshly (selfish) desires, and taking on a Heavenly perspective are aspects of a yielded life.

There are God promises attached to a yielded life. When we yield to God, He promises to prune us (refine us) much like a gardener would prune a fruit tree so that it would bear more fruit (John 15:2). While the pruning process isn’t always pleasant, God promises that we will reap a harvest of righteousness and peace when we submit to the process (Hebrews 12:11).

I want to encourage you to take some time today and reflect on your heart posture. Have you yielded your “yes” to God? Are you postured to receive from Him and to allow Him to prune your heart? Are there areas of your heart that you have yet to yield to Him? Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the areas of your heart that He wants to work on, then yield to the process.

Song: Yield by Jon Reddick