Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it

How great the pain of searing loss,  The Father turns His face away As wounds which mar the chosen One, Bring many sons to glory Christ, on the night he was betrayed, prayed three times that the cup of God's wrath be taken from away from him.  A man who always experienced the fullness of the presence of the Father was now going to experience the most agony.  The Father turned His face away and Christ cried, "Why have you forsaken me?"  Do you think that Jesus cried more over the separation from the Father than the wounds that showed his ribs? Perhaps it was because Jesus knew the over-surpassing, joy and delight in being connected to the God.  I pray we might know that more and more this Easter.

“…’ Jerusalem will be a city without walls because of the great number of people and animals in it.  And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,' declares the LORD, 'and I will be its glory within.'”—Zechariah 2:4-5 “Look into my eyes!” I would glimpse into Jesus’ eyes before I would turn away again.     “There is a part inside you which you don’t want me to see.  Let me see it!” Suddenly I felt vulnerable and on edge.  What could He possibly be looking at?  I had the feeling of a great dry land on my body that had never been watered or touched by His presence.  He was now entering into that waste and renewing it with His Spirit.  I apparently had never let Him in.  It’s like the junk drawer or the closet of odds and ends that you don’t know what to do with.   See, what God was doing was showing me how much more of myself I need to surrender to Him.  Not much happened outside of my spirit except a greater s...

The psalmist wrote at one point, " My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. "--Psalm 84:2 as well as " As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.   My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?"--Psalm 42:1-2 There is a great deal of angst within those sentences.  It's not--as a favorite pastor and teacher of mine has said--something you put on the back of a t-shirt with the picture of Bambi.  No.  You have been running.  You are tired.  You have had no food and water.  You ache, long, and groan for Rest.   Why don't I do that more?   Lord, bring us to the point where we cry out, "I gotta have more of You!" But of course, for the sake of tradition...

Maturity in Christ is a bit different from the world's perspective.  In America, you're titled mature if you're independent.  In Christ, your maturity hangs upon how dependent we realize we actually are.  There's no place for the occasional: I can figure it out. It's not a big deal. "Alicia...You want to become so, so mature.  But maturity in Christ is childlike dependence upon Me.  Return to the things you did at first.  That is how I want you.  Not walking, but loving my arms.  Come to me like a little child.  Desperate for love!  Repent of spiritual pride!" "At that time Jesus said, 'I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little  children.'"--Matthew 11:25 " And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little  children , you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'"--Matthew 18:3 " Jesus ...