Verse of the Day: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.—2 Timothy 2:15
Memory of the month: And they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?" —Luke 24:32
Today's reading: JOSHUA 16-18 LUKE 2:1-24
Kneeling
When our congress met for the first time there were no electric lights-no power of any kind but that generated by an open fire of wood or coal. Land transport was done by actually horse or mule power.
People prayed on their knees. They read the word of God and meditated on it. They wrote in long hand with a writing utensil of some sort on primitive paper.
Then came steam power and railroads and the industrial revolution with wars throughout. Building larger and larger buildings became the obsession in the cities and business and barbed wire in the countryside.
People prayed on their knees; they wrote with writing utensils the thoughts they had as they meditated; they memorized scripture; they worshipped together.
Wars and moonshots gave way to most of the technological advances prior to 1970. Then, the computer age rooted and took off first like walking in mud but then like a flash fire in a paper mill and still continues. Now we can wear a watch to bed that keeps track of our oxygen saturation level as we send our EKG or ECG to our doctor digitally from the same wrist.
But-as advanced as the world around us gets, personal effort to seek the kingdom will never be a touch-screen. Praying to God Almighty, The Eternal can only be done from a human heart, mind and soul. The saving power of the blood of Christ can never be digitized-it must be divinely applied by request of the human need. No wires-no power but God's-no buttons, boxes, or blinking lights-nothing created by the hand of mankind can touch the hem of God's robe-only the hand of man reaching for God.
Seeking God can still be done only one way: one heart at a time kneeling, figuratively or literally, humbly reaching from the deepest part of the soul. It cannot be programmed.
Personal holiness cannot be sent in a group text or mass email. God can only be sought individually-not collectively. Salvation in Christ Jesus is never accomplished by the man-written rules of a religious organization or ruling body.
Yes, again, we do have to live in this physical world but:
For in Him we live and move and have our being. Acts 17:28
All the processing power in the world-all the atomic power harnessed by man-all the knowledge-all the money-none of this can get man's soul where it needs to be for eternity-OR- where the heart needs to be with every beat-humbled before God.
Nothing takes the place of consistency or, as the scripture calls it, faithfulness. Nothing takes the place of our seeking God with all that we are. Hearing God is learned a breath at a time over years of faithful listening. Finding God's heart and purpose for us in all things around us is done second by second not click by click. Our lives are not in a little device in our hands-we do not live in a hard drive.
Reading God's word is a must. How much do you read His word? Read more.
Prayer is a must. How much do you pray? Pray more.
Scripture memory or hiding God's word in your heart is possible. How probable is it in your life of faithfulness? Memorize.
How much do you sit and clear your mind of everything but God and His holiness? Learn to meditate.
Have you fasted lately? Learn.
How does it feel to humble yourself before God in the worst of times-in the best of times? Learn humility.
Have you ever written down what you thought while praying or meditating? Make a plan.
Seek God and everything you need in this life will be provided.(Matthew 6:33)
Nothing takes the place of kneeling before God...
...because He loves us...
Father in Heaven,
I am guilty of apathy and laziness and procrastination. Have mercy and forgive me. Build fire in me of resolve and faithfulness to Your heart.
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