"When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
And through the rivers,
they shall not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire,
you shall not be burned,
Nor shall the flame scorch you.
For I am the LORD your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior."
Isaiah 43:2-3a
This is the verse that I am going to hang my hat on for the next 2 weeks or so. It is my Scripture Memory Verse for October 15th.
I need to hang onto something.
The emotions are still up and down.
But I know that my God is worth hanging onto.
His truth, His Word is the light on my path.
He is my Savior.
He has led me through so much. He has brought me through the waters and the fire. He has brought me out of those things. No I wasn't consumed. The waters cleansed me. The fire purified me.
Again and again, God is going to use the painful things in our lives to stretch us and grow us.
This is probably another time such as that. I am working on a new schedule with my family. I am working out new responsibilities with a new job. I am working on trying to grow closer to God, to grow and mature in my relationship with Him.
However, I am realizing, as I am writing this, that I am making it all about me. My trying. Not God doing and me "being." As Cindy says, we are human "beings" not human "doings."
I am going to go have something little to eat, continue with the laundry, and in the middle of that, spend some time sitting in Jesus' lap.
Cindy asked me a question yesterday, that she was asked by her life coach, and she wanted me to think on it and answer it before we get together again for our life coaching.
The question.
What do you long for in your relationship with God?
It is one I am going to be working on and thinking about for a bit.
Anyone else want to share with me what your answer to that question it? I would love to hear. What better way to encourage each other in our walks, that to know, and to have others know what it is we long for in our relationship with God, and to hear each others' longings as well.
9 comments:
what a good question Heather! Before I answer I must tell you how much I love that passage of scripture, One of my favorite hymns is based on it. I can't sing it without crying ... I recall being in church and literally feeling as if I was in that raging river, fire etc ... clinging to God with all that I am. Every time I see it in the bulletin I reach into my purse for a tissue. Some day soon I will be standing next to my son singing it. There will be tears for sure, tears of joy and thanksgiving for our God is mighty to save, no matter the depth of the river or intensity of the fire!
What do I long for? I long to truly love God as easily and fiercely as I love my children. I seek Him and I do love Him but my love for them seems to come more easily. I long for Him to truly be my first thought in the morning and the last thought before I sleep. It is so easy to say that my joy is complete in Him but it is hard to really live out when life is difficult
I agree with Tina, this is an awesome question. There is soo much that I long for in my relationship with Christ but I think it all can be summed up in tthe word....Trust. I long to trust enough to just turn everything over to Him and not try to pick it back up myself. I long to trust His plan. I long to trust His timing. I just long to let go and fully trust.
What a question. My mind whirls with confusion at first, surprise even. It is a question that demands that I clarify my own thinking, that I examine myself more carefully and reevaluate my priorities.
After a discussion I had with someone yesterday that surprised even me, I think that what I want and need the most right now is for my resistance to be loved by Him to be taken away, to melt, to be exterminated - whatever it takes. I am dimly aware of how totally out of touch with real love my heart had always been. I resent that but have had to live with it most of my life.
I crave to be free of my resistance to love, to be free to let myself respond in joy, to feel uninhibited in my spontaneous outbursts of affection for God. These are things I have never experienced but deeply long for.
Thank-you so much for making me think about this today.
Hello, my friend! I'm chewing on that question too. It seems to grow and change as I do. I'm still praying for you in all these changes.
love you,
laura
"The waters cleansed me. The fire purified me." How true. Fire is painful and hard but it is so purifying. The Refiner's Fire about silver being purified is one of my all time favorites, if not my favorite.
What do I long for? So much...more intimacy, more ability to hear God, to love Him more, to be more filled with Him, for Him to be at the forefront of all my thoughts all the time, to commune in righteousness with Him, to feel and know His joy and peace. Oh to be filled with His joy and peace amidst my pain.
Love,
Paula
Wow...I wrote a post today and Eating Worms and I realize my answer to the question is for me to just "be" and allow Him to use me for His purposes. Great post!!
I long to know and trust Him more each day! To truly realize how much He loves me...to accept His unconditional love and acceptance of me. I long to serve Him more faithfully. I long to teach my son (and baby to come) about Him...with my actions. I want him (them) to know that Chrisianity is not about a religion or a set of rules; it is about a passionate relationship with a living Savior, Jesus Christ!
Boy, I long for a lot, don't I?!?! lol It's all true...and good, though!!
Pray that you will be blessed as you meditate on and memorize this scripture this week.
P.S. I just announced our "baby news" on my blog today. :)
I read your question about what I would like most from my relationship with God. Something I have begun to taste - and want a whole lot more - is experiencing that I love for God to be with me, He is special to me and He is the apple of my eye. That is the definition of JOY. And when God experiences that I love for Him to be with me then I receive His strength according to Nehemiah 8:10. Wow! How awesome!
May God speak good to You.
I'm at my brother Floyd's for a short time before we head back home.
Olive
Elaine,
Chaos at my house. Still.
Caught up on your posts.
Prayed for you like crazy last Saturday.
And that question: What do you long for in your relationship with God?
Wow!
Will be contemplating the answer.
And praying.
Sweet dreams.
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