There was a pursuit problem. I wasn't pursuing him and he wasn't pursuing me. I felt neglected and I missed the romance. He felt neglected and wondered why there was still tags on all the black lace hanging in the closet. Did we still love one another? Deeply. However, passion, pursuit and patience were lacking and as a result, we were floundering.
When I think of my walk with God, I think of it much like I do a marriage. For many, we are so focused on the 'experience' of becoming a Christian and saying the sinner's prayer and very little thought or even effort is put beyond that. While that is important, many fail to realize that it in itself is a single event. A wedding of enormous proportion is no more of a guarantee of happiness than a couple standing before a judge in a courtroom, simply because it is what comes after that will show the relationship for what it really is.
'The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
His mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
"The Lord is my portion," says my soul,
"therefore, I will hope in Him."
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
to the soul who seeks Him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the Lord.'
Lamentations 3:22-26
The love of the Lord is not dependant on us--it is eternal. Nothing we could ever do or fail to do will change that. However, just as in a marriage, there is responsibility on our part. It is easy to feel as though we prayed and therefore God ought to act. When He fails to (immediately or favorably) we throw up our fist and say, "I thought you loved me! I am trying to pray just like you command and you are not responding!" The thing is, we approach God the way we approach our spouses--we have the consumer McDonald's approach: What can you do for me right now? Sure, we understand there is cost involved, we wouldn't expect to go to McD's and eat free, but we want it at minimal cost with minimal delay.
And we wonder why our marriages and our walk with God are less than satisfying.
You see, God is faithful. The fact that the sun rose above the horizon this morning and you have breath in your lungs declares loudly that God is faithful. Sure, there may not be dollars in the bank or clean laundry in the closets, but there is breath in your lungs and light in your eyes. When our hearts are so enamored with God that we pursue Him and wait patiently for Him, it is then our hearts will truly be captivated by His goodness. When our hearts change from, "I prayed my prayer and attended the service, so now you should respond God" to "Oh God, my soul is hungry for you! Grant me grace that I may see your hand and presence in my life today Lord" our lives will dramatically change.
My marriage radically changed when I stopped expecting my husband to bless me and I began to simply delight in his presence in my life. I started to realize that his presence alone was a blessing and my heart grew content in that. His response to my quiet pursuit of the beauty and simplicity of his presence changed my marriage as well as his response to me. God is the same way. While His love for you will never depend on your pursuit or love for Him, His response to you will. When our hearts are passionate about pursuing His presence in our lives and our portion is found in Him alone, hope will rise as His goodness is lavished upon us. As this week unfolds before you, may your heart wait patiently upon the Lord and find it's delight in His presence.
Blessings to you dear friend...
<><tce
No comments:
Post a Comment