Letters From Norman
by Norman Grubb

St. Simons Island, GA,
April 26th

Marilyn dear,

Don’t try to give up anything because trying is human self-effort. Tell God you don’t want to give up anything, but then tell him you know He’s grabbed you and you trust HIM to make you give up what HE knows you should. Then DON’T TRY. Keep on as you are, and expect HIM to do the loosening! “Trying” is really still the self-effort spirit of Satan working on you.

Then, yes, love, we are always persons and so always must be self-satisfied. So don’t be alarmed by feelings of self-pleasure. The big difference is we used to get pleasure by being for ourselves, but now our pleasure is being for God and others. But meanwhile we live in a world of fallen self-pleasing, so sure, we shall be continually pulled by temptations, don’t fight them; but then say “That’s only Satan tempting me, and he has a right to, I’m living in his camp, but those self-drawings are only his pulls on me, what I really am pleased with is glorifying Christ in my life.” Then you just substitute your Christ-being for the temptation pulls.

As to falling away, love, such “fears” are to press you into that boldness of faith which says, “You’ve chosen me, and keep me, and it’s up to You to keep keeping me, so I’ll have no fear,” which really means I’m not loving and trusting you truly! Actually falling away is not falling, it would mean you hated anddespised God and wanted no more of Him. So we’re not in that dimension!! Love, you’ll never be too bold in writing me, I like bold ones, and hope I shall see you at the end of my Nov. tour!

As for this “zeal” question, dear, keep off trying to assess yourself. Light does-n’t look at itself, it just SHINES, and others see by it. If you have really and finally believed according to Gal.2.20 that you are now CHRIST living in you as you, and you His human form, then leave Him to give you the stirring He wants to. If you don’t “feel” you have zeal, then don’t “try” to have it. Just be your loving Marilyn self, and Christ manifesting Himself in His Marilyn form as He pleases. Got it, love? Write again.

Always loving you,

Norman

Tampa, FL
May 2nd

Marilyn my dear,

Your letter has followed down to me on this tour. You know I always like to exchange letters with you. You are such a plain searcher and digger, and you share your searchings with me.

Of course you are right, dear, this “trying” life is way off, because it is really Satan’s independent “try-try” spirit expressed by us as if us. But as you realise it is God’s good negative way of giving us a ‘good’ dark which can then be replaced by a perfect light. 

But dear, the “stones of stumbling” you are always being tripped up on is that you hope God may sometime bring you to this release, but meanwhile you must struggle and suffer. SOMEHOW the Spirit will open your eyes to the given fact that all this is already yours. That Satan-spirit of “try, try” was cast out on Jesus’s body on Calvary, of course representing our bodies (2 Cor. 5:14 & 21, and then Rom. 6:6, 7 & 11.) You see you are still assessing your experience by your feelings and appearances. You’ll never get through that way, and by that deceit. You and we have to BELIEVE. Our only “obedience” is what Paul called us to–to the “obedience of faith,” Rom. 1:5 & 16:26, almost the first and last verses of Romans—just obeying not by works but by solidly believing what He has told you to believe in His word!

Dear, there’s no other way, and you foolishly “suffer” till you “obey” by believing. And believing means from your heart and will saying a thing is what the Scripture says it is, and keep saying it as fact, and bearing witness to it, no matter how you or others “feel”. So you say, “I am the love of God” (Christ in me), and don’t say “I need that kind of love”! And don’t wait for a heart of flesh, but SAY “I have that heart because it is He as me,” even though you feel it is still a heart of stone! No other way, love.

So I’ve got to keep “getting at” my Marilyn pen-friend until you “obey” and simply say and say and say those facts about yourself—that that try-try spirit of independent self has been put out of you at Calvary, and the Spirit of truth, HE HIMSELF in you as you, fixed for eternity is the fact. And as you keep saying it, the Spirit will confirm it to you and you’ll write and tell me so—1 John 5:10.

Loving you as ever,

Norman

January 22nd

Marilyn dear,

You are caught up and locked up by the loving Spirit who will not have you possessed by any but Himself. It’s no good, dear, you crying out why He doesn’t reveal Himself to you in the way in which you think He should, and what about your wandering thoughts etc. All this is irrelevant. He IS revealing Himself to you as you in you, but while you try to “experience” the revelation, you never will, because it is still a subtle form of self-reliance, and you would finally attribute any revelation to the fact of you seeing Him. So you are shut up to faith, and you know by now, love, this faith means you “obey” by believing and outwardly saying it with your mouth that while you once were indwelt by Satan and expressed his nature, now through Christ, He is the permanent indweller in you, and you are so joined that you are being He in expression whether you realise it or not. And realizing is merely secondary and even dangerous when you can then make a boast, as it were, that you are inwardly conscious. No, dear, you ARE, you ARE, you ARE. That’s all. And when you lay down your arms and stop questioning and almost demanding some conscious consciousness, you’ll remain unconscious. You have got to say with the Psalmist (139) that if you are making your bed in hell “Thou are there.”

Loving you,

Norman