Monday, August 25, 2014

Revisit The Splendor Of God....And Stand In Awe Of His Very Presence


Jeremiah 5:23-25 -  "But my people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned against me and have chosen to practice idolatry. They do not say from the heart, 'Let us live in awe of the LORD our God, for he gives us rain each spring and fall, assuring us of plentiful harvests.'  Your wickedness has deprived you of these wonderful blessings. Your sin has robbed you of all these good things."

 

Jeremiah had the privilege of speaking the very heart of God to his people.  The words did not sugar coat God feelings…they were meant to pierce the hard heart of those that had forgotten all that God had done for them. These words were meant to melt the coldness that had given them the idea in the first place that they could ever exist without a relationship with their maker.

 

He might as well have been sitting at the anchor desk of ABC…NBC…or Fox news when these words were recorded.  They pack truth and wisdom for anyone who has ever known God and lost their way.  They remind us of Romans 3:10-12, and 23…”As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” ... For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.”

 

God’s standard is set high…and is only attainable through careful examination of the sin in our lives that has held us back from experiencing his wonderful love. We have to identify the sin…tell Jesus we are sorry we committed it…and ask his forgiveness.  Then he allows us to lay it at the feet of the cross he died on to make a way for all of us to know his heart…a heart of agape love that never runs dry of sources.

 

It might be a bit painful….and you will probably cry tears.  They will be a mixture of regret…guilt….and awe of the God that sent his only son to die for all of us. The most wonderful thing is that those tears will wash that sin right out of your lives and give you a new strength…a new courage…a new passion to love others around us the way God loves us. They sharpen all of your senses….not just your vision…and help you see the splendor of God so much more clearly.

 

I was reminded of my many sins the last 3 three days on an amazing journey to Emmaus with 44 women. There were more than 27 others that helped to guide their trip through a refresher course in just how much God loves us all. We all left what felt like a utopia…where God had placed a protective shell of love around the camp that fed our minds and bodies and soul last night…and will wake this morning inside the piece of the world where he placed each of us on Earth. We will get to practice saying…. “ God…help me to always….always know that you are with me…that you can strengthen me to show your love every minute of every day” ….relying only on God…his son…and the Holy Spirit to shield us from ever falling away from him again.

 

Father….I thank you for the honor of traveling with these wonderful ladies this weekend as you helped them see you fresh and beautiful…full of love and mercy and strength.  I stand in a new sense of complete awe of the splendor of your presence this morning. I ask your covering over any attack of satan as long as you can provide it.  Provide for all of us a daily time to retreat into those memories and find your strength and your eyes…and your heart to work through the mess we returned to today. Show us how to navigate the pathway out with your love…and your mercy…so the light we shine as we exit the mess will draw others out of their mess too. Amen.

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