Sunday Peace
I've been avoiding my blog, of all the silly things to do! Here it sits, waiting for me to come and post into it some exciting news, or some inspired revelation, or the results of some fun Word study. And here I sit, without much in the way of exciting news, unless you consider that I had front row seats this morning (actually, 3rd row!) to see 10 people come to the Lord. That was fun! :) I actually teared up a couple of times! As for the results of the fun Word study, we'll I'm working on it!
Inspired revelation... hmmm... let's see... no, not that one..., ummm...nah, uh-huh, not inspired enough... Oh! I know! Here's one! It's about prayer. Prayer is a good thing! But how often do we pray and talk to the Lord as if He's "out there, somewhere, beneath the pale moonlight; thinking of me, and loving me tonight"? (Can't you hear those dear little mice singing even now?) But seriously, when we address God, do we speak to someone in the sky, someone *outside* of ourselves? Most often we do! We might even feel "lonely" for the Lord, and sigh longingly for Him because we're not adequately sensing His presence. Well, I found a cure for that! *wink* Now just go with me for a minute, it'll all make sense soon! I am a Christian. (I am a C; I am a C*H; I am a C*H*R*I*S*T*I*A*N, and I have C*H*I*R*S*T in my H*E*A*R*T... Oops, there it is!)
As a Child of God, I have a direct hook up, right? Didn't Jesus give us His Spirit to live inside of us? So doesn't that mean that God is not out there somewhere, but in here, with me? It does, it does indeed! And He's not hampered, disabled, or limited in anyway. When Isaiah said "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short that it cannot save; Nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear," I think Isaiah knew something that we often forget! It was, after all, Jewish folk who came up with the saying, "From your lips to Gods' ear!" Now, I know the Father is in heaven, and seated at His right hand is the Son, and that Jesus is there preparing a place for us and interceeding on our behalf. So yes, God is out there somewhere. But! The precious Holy Spirit, *HE* is in here. And He's fully God. If I really want to make sure my prayers aren't bouncing off the ceiling, but instead reaching the vaulted chambers of heaven, then I'd do well to speak into the microphone that's wired for sound right inside of me! From my lips to God's ear is no greater a distance than from my mouth to my heart, where He sits enthroned!
Learning to turn prayer into an internal thing takes time. Learning to seek Him where He promised to abide (in us!) isn't always intuitive. It takes quiet, and solitude, and being still. There might be some who are shocked or offended at the idea of turning inward and praying to a God who dwells inside your skin with you... but you better hope He does dwell there, or you have even bigger problems to deal with! I often think that we are suprised to find the Spirit of God inside ourselves, because we don't fully believe that He did what He said He'd do!
We're on a journey, right? Walking with God, headed for our "Home". I love this verse: How blessed is the man whose strength is in You, In whose heart are the highways to Zion! (Ps. 84:5) Did you get that? The highway to Zion is in your very own heart. So when you pray, you don't need to go out to the rooftop to boost the signal, no! You really can go into your closet, close the door, and get the best reception! And you know what else? I think the Holy Spirit likes being included! He's so wonderful, always pointing to the Father and to the Son, revealing the Father and the Son to us, but He *is* God, and fully ought to be worshipped as such! Father, Spirit, Son, the Three in One!
So when I feel a bit lonely, or hungry, or thirsty, or dying-man-crawling-through-the-desert *desperate*, I can open the eyes of my heart, and to my delight, find Him there, waiting on me, already as close to me as close can be. He's waiting there with a feast, with bread from heaven and a rich wine, the sweetest companion I'll ever know on this side of the veil. And when I look for Him and find Him there, He never fails to lead me into truth, or to do the work of healing and repairing and restoring my wounded soul. But best of all, He carries me into the deep places of God, and there, He helps me lay my burdens down.
My heart is His home, His heart is my home.
"I AM always with you," He said.
Inspired revelation... hmmm... let's see... no, not that one..., ummm...nah, uh-huh, not inspired enough... Oh! I know! Here's one! It's about prayer. Prayer is a good thing! But how often do we pray and talk to the Lord as if He's "out there, somewhere, beneath the pale moonlight; thinking of me, and loving me tonight"? (Can't you hear those dear little mice singing even now?) But seriously, when we address God, do we speak to someone in the sky, someone *outside* of ourselves? Most often we do! We might even feel "lonely" for the Lord, and sigh longingly for Him because we're not adequately sensing His presence. Well, I found a cure for that! *wink* Now just go with me for a minute, it'll all make sense soon! I am a Christian. (I am a C; I am a C*H; I am a C*H*R*I*S*T*I*A*N, and I have C*H*I*R*S*T in my H*E*A*R*T... Oops, there it is!)
As a Child of God, I have a direct hook up, right? Didn't Jesus give us His Spirit to live inside of us? So doesn't that mean that God is not out there somewhere, but in here, with me? It does, it does indeed! And He's not hampered, disabled, or limited in anyway. When Isaiah said "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short that it cannot save; Nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear," I think Isaiah knew something that we often forget! It was, after all, Jewish folk who came up with the saying, "From your lips to Gods' ear!" Now, I know the Father is in heaven, and seated at His right hand is the Son, and that Jesus is there preparing a place for us and interceeding on our behalf. So yes, God is out there somewhere. But! The precious Holy Spirit, *HE* is in here. And He's fully God. If I really want to make sure my prayers aren't bouncing off the ceiling, but instead reaching the vaulted chambers of heaven, then I'd do well to speak into the microphone that's wired for sound right inside of me! From my lips to God's ear is no greater a distance than from my mouth to my heart, where He sits enthroned!
Learning to turn prayer into an internal thing takes time. Learning to seek Him where He promised to abide (in us!) isn't always intuitive. It takes quiet, and solitude, and being still. There might be some who are shocked or offended at the idea of turning inward and praying to a God who dwells inside your skin with you... but you better hope He does dwell there, or you have even bigger problems to deal with! I often think that we are suprised to find the Spirit of God inside ourselves, because we don't fully believe that He did what He said He'd do!
We're on a journey, right? Walking with God, headed for our "Home". I love this verse: How blessed is the man whose strength is in You, In whose heart are the highways to Zion! (Ps. 84:5) Did you get that? The highway to Zion is in your very own heart. So when you pray, you don't need to go out to the rooftop to boost the signal, no! You really can go into your closet, close the door, and get the best reception! And you know what else? I think the Holy Spirit likes being included! He's so wonderful, always pointing to the Father and to the Son, revealing the Father and the Son to us, but He *is* God, and fully ought to be worshipped as such! Father, Spirit, Son, the Three in One!
So when I feel a bit lonely, or hungry, or thirsty, or dying-man-crawling-through-the-desert *desperate*, I can open the eyes of my heart, and to my delight, find Him there, waiting on me, already as close to me as close can be. He's waiting there with a feast, with bread from heaven and a rich wine, the sweetest companion I'll ever know on this side of the veil. And when I look for Him and find Him there, He never fails to lead me into truth, or to do the work of healing and repairing and restoring my wounded soul. But best of all, He carries me into the deep places of God, and there, He helps me lay my burdens down.
My heart is His home, His heart is my home.
"I AM always with you," He said.
posted by Lisa-Anne | 3:25 PM
2 Comments:
My sweet wife. Your words are like birds that nest in the tree of your sweet little head and sing lovely songs to me as I pass by in the forest.
- Your Hubby.
Hey LA,
Your point about turning inward to commune with Him has stuck with me and keeps coming back to me over the last couple days since i read this. It is a true and very good point!!! Thanks for taking the time to write these out!
Love you,
Jessica
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