Greetings in the name of the One who takes us ‘deeper’ in our spiritual life, Jesus Christ – THE Risen Saviour! I trust that the atmosphere of this day has not ‘dampened’ your spirit. I trust that you had a great weekend and Monday – enjoying all the blessings and provision of God. Today I will be praying for you, asking Father to lead you into a place of peace and rest.
Two thoughts are in my mind today and I want to simply share them with you, so that you can have something to think about as well. First, there was a discussion taking place about the Christian journey and how it begins with a response to Jesus’ invitation to “follow” and the decision is challenging because: Enter through the narrow gate [that leads to the Christian way]. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:13-14 NIV. I have a belief that that many people look at the beginning of the Christian life and think it “small” – restrictive, no room for life, and difficult to maintain. Yes, they see or seem to understand the end of the journey and some concept of heaven but they don’t really consider the “middle leg of the journey” where God is leading from the narrow gate to what the Psalmist declares are God’s wide open spaces. It is my experience that from the “narrow” beginning, God persistently and consistently and with great delight leads us into wider-deeper-higher places. (see Psalm 18:19; 119:45; Romans 5:1-5). In sharp contrast, those who follow the “wide” door find a path that keeps diminishing in opportunities and rewards and satisfaction. Now think about that idea.
Second, the reality of prayer and how God answers keeps unfolding in my thoughts. Just yesterday morning as I was reading my daily Psalm, these words danced in front of me: …O Lord, my healing God, I cried out to You for a miracle and You healed me! You brought me back from the brink of death, from the depths below. Now here I am, alive and well, fully restored!…Then He came through transforming all my wailing into a whirling dance of ecstatic praise!…Psalm 30:3, 11a TPT. As I reread those words this morning, God sent me another quote to chew on: He (God) sovereignly interweaves our intercession and His intervention into the final tapestry of His strategic purposes. Selwyn Hughes. Yes, God wants to be our Rescuer, and He wants us to be fully alive, and He wants us to be happy, and He wants us to understand-accept-embrace that there is a purpose behind what He is doing…how He acts/reacts in response to our prayers. For a moment — think about the last answered prayer you are aware of: first, did you thank God…[I am sure you did], but did you look for God’s purpose? Something else to think about today.
Be blessed!