Monday, July 31, 2017 Want to Want: Desiring to Hear the Voice of God (Inspired by Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster)
Monday, July 31, 2017
Want to Want: Desiring to Hear the Voice of God
(Inspired by Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster)
Scripture:
Psalm 42:1
As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.
Psalm 63:1-2
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.
Devotional:
It has been three days my last post, and all weekend I have been vacillating between the choice to slow down and allow us to take time to marinate and simmer versus not belaboring the point of meditation in my daily devotional. I am fighting a little humor in the vacillation his morning as I share this, because the irony is that the need to meditate and the need to learn about meditation requires meditation.
I strongly encourage each of you take some time to read through the book Celebration of Discipline. The section I am discussing today talks about desiring God’s voice and seeking a personal relationship with him. The description of Israel rejecting God’s attempts at intimacy in lieu of a mediator is a sobering thought for me. As a young believer, I listened to (and continue to listen to) teaching from multiple influential leaders. In one particular case, the Lord dealt with me firmly one morning and I needed to "get that woman out of our relationship ". It was over a year before I felt I could listen to her again- and certainly not because she had any error in her teaching. God wanted me to learn to hear from Him for myself.
He does not want us to refuse to accept the teaching of His true prophets, both from his word and over the years and today, but first and foremost He desires to speak to us personally on an individual level. I cannot express the depth of my desire for all of us to have a desire as well to hear his voice for ourselves.
God does desire to speak to us in the mundane and everyday of our lives. He wants us to openHis Word for ourselves, and he wants to minister to where we are. He desires you, and your soul desires him. No need to fear, and no need to feel you're not qualified. The One, the only true mediator Jesus Christ, allow us to enter the throne room by His blood anyway. That's the only qualification, my sweet friends.
Take a moment and ask yourself the question, do I want to hear God for myself? If the answer is no, it's OK to admit to that before the Lord. He wants to give you that “want to.” As for mission starts, and his individual to each of us
Prayer:
Father, sometimes I am afraid to allow your voice to speak to me on a personal level. Lord, I ask that you would place a desire in me. I hope in my heart to you today and receive your word for me.
Intercession:
I lift my children today. I pray that they would also learn to hear your voice directly, and they would not rely on my faith or the faith of others to carry them through. I also lift up (name needs, journal as time allows. Try to get in the habit of writing them down as needs arise).
Thank you, God, for your heart toward us. I ask for blessings on our day.
In Jesus name I pray, amen
Want to Want: Desiring to Hear the Voice of God
(Inspired by Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster)
Scripture:
Psalm 42:1
As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for You, O God.
Psalm 63:1-2
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.
Devotional:
It has been three days my last post, and all weekend I have been vacillating between the choice to slow down and allow us to take time to marinate and simmer versus not belaboring the point of meditation in my daily devotional. I am fighting a little humor in the vacillation his morning as I share this, because the irony is that the need to meditate and the need to learn about meditation requires meditation.
I strongly encourage each of you take some time to read through the book Celebration of Discipline. The section I am discussing today talks about desiring God’s voice and seeking a personal relationship with him. The description of Israel rejecting God’s attempts at intimacy in lieu of a mediator is a sobering thought for me. As a young believer, I listened to (and continue to listen to) teaching from multiple influential leaders. In one particular case, the Lord dealt with me firmly one morning and I needed to "get that woman out of our relationship ". It was over a year before I felt I could listen to her again- and certainly not because she had any error in her teaching. God wanted me to learn to hear from Him for myself.
He does not want us to refuse to accept the teaching of His true prophets, both from his word and over the years and today, but first and foremost He desires to speak to us personally on an individual level. I cannot express the depth of my desire for all of us to have a desire as well to hear his voice for ourselves.
God does desire to speak to us in the mundane and everyday of our lives. He wants us to openHis Word for ourselves, and he wants to minister to where we are. He desires you, and your soul desires him. No need to fear, and no need to feel you're not qualified. The One, the only true mediator Jesus Christ, allow us to enter the throne room by His blood anyway. That's the only qualification, my sweet friends.
Take a moment and ask yourself the question, do I want to hear God for myself? If the answer is no, it's OK to admit to that before the Lord. He wants to give you that “want to.” As for mission starts, and his individual to each of us
Prayer:
Father, sometimes I am afraid to allow your voice to speak to me on a personal level. Lord, I ask that you would place a desire in me. I hope in my heart to you today and receive your word for me.
Intercession:
I lift my children today. I pray that they would also learn to hear your voice directly, and they would not rely on my faith or the faith of others to carry them through. I also lift up (name needs, journal as time allows. Try to get in the habit of writing them down as needs arise).
Thank you, God, for your heart toward us. I ask for blessings on our day.
In Jesus name I pray, amen
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