There are so many of us looking for that 'moment' from God - that blast of energy that envelopes us and pulsates through our bodies, changing us forever from head to toe. That's why we have people that travel from church to church - or go on pilgrimages to the 'places' of excitement. If the place has it, then maybe they can catch part of it.
As misguided as these people are in their chase for the experience, I must admit that I do understand what motivates them. I desperately desire to have that supernatural experience that blows the doors off of my life forever. The third heaven of II Corinthians 12:2. Something so spontaneous and out-of-this-world that nothing will ever be the same. I want to hear 'inexpressible things that man is not permitted to tell."
It's important to remember, however, that spontaneity flows out of discipline, and a lot of what we call discipline is really the simple act of showing up. Be there. I want to thank my parents for instilling this trait into me. If you say you are going to do something - do it. If you say you are going to be somewhere - be there. Even if you don't feel like it.
This carries over into everything - even prayer. Sometimes it matters just to show up at the hour you've appointed for prayer. Set a time aside, and be there.
Again, spontaneity flows out of discipline. Michael Jordan 'flew' because he practiced for hours. A great musician 'goes off' because he put in years of disciplined work. DaVinci spent ten years drawing ears, elbows and hands in different aspects - then he painted. This is a novel thought in today's age of immediate results without any work.
You want a 'moment' with God? You need to make a deliberate, disciplined effort in this day of distractions to be with Him, to meet Him in your prayer closet, to be there even when you don't feel like it, on a regular basis. The 'moments' will come from these 'mundane' appointments. When you least expect it He will grab you and take you to places you've never been before. But before He can do that - you need to show up. The extraordinary will come from the ordinary.
5 comments:
THIS was the best post so far, Tom - probably because of the way this applies my life. DISCIPLINE. In this day and age we (myself included) look for things when we want them and we don't want to have to put in the effort to get it. Or if effort is required, we put all our energy into the task that gives us the greatest material return. I'm frustrated with myself. The one thing I don't have in my Christian walk is the discipline I need. Every day I pray - I pray for my wife, my family & friends, and my own Christian walk. All this praying and asking for things and I don't give God the time, on a daily basis, to grow in His Word. I spend, on average, 50-60 hours at work per week with multiple meetings each day, but none of those meetings are with God. I think about all the things I accomplish, and the strength I ask God for on a daily basis, but I'm never setting up a 1-on-1 meeting with God. And I am constantly wondering why God isn't just speaking to me...Why would he want to? I'm a hypocrite to my own preaching: Staff members at work always tell me how they want to get promoted & make more money. They want to succeed. They tell me all these things, but they don't work on it. They're arriving late, or not at all. They're doing the bare minimum to get by, and expect rewards for it. I'm seeing it here, and telling them why they won't get ahead, yet I'm doing the same thing with God...
I was reading Billy Graham's weekly devotional, and he made a great point: we come into the world with nothing and we leave the world with nothing. God has given us our intelligence, personality, imagination, and physical energy. Where do we get the notion that our idea of success is the same as God's? If God were to hold in check the breath of life for one moment, our existence would shrivel into nothing. If everything is FROM God, why are we not devoting more time TO God?
It's kind of funny this post was about discipline - it's something that has been on my mind for weeks.
Sorry for the long response.
i'm with you on this one. i remember reading celebration of discipline by Richard Foster and putting a lot of his suggestions into action. I began to grow in the Lord more than ever. I have noticed that it is not just 10 minutes in the morning or night that will allow for moments with God, but prayer throughout the day. We have to stop trying to fit God in, and instead get to the point where we are trying to fit the things of life in. God should be our first priority from the time we wake up to the time we go to sleep. If we are going to get anything out of the relationship, we have to put something into it!
It's a combination of time set aside and constant meditation. Like a marriage - I love my wife and she is in my thoughts - but for our relationship to grow, we need time together apart from the things of the world. Jesus expects that. According to Matt 6, He expects there to be a 'prayer closet.'
Mark, what do you think? Mark? Mark? Hello . . .
Ya this one really hits me hard. The reason why you even have to ask where i am is a bad sign. I have been slacking big time. But its time for me to stop making the excuses and actually do what i said i was going to do. ( like you said tom.) I am the oppisite, i will say i am goin to do it and then i dont. i always use the excuse that i am to tired. but the reason i am tired is because im not asking for the strength that scottie was talkin about. So i want to learn how to be disciplined! NO MORE SLACKING OFF FOR ME.
Mark, you're not the only one slacking...I slack too. Here is my deal: if I tell someone that I'll do something, I'll do it. Whether it's helping someone move, helping them with a job, whatever it is....but I tell God that I'll spend more time in his Word, and I don't. I slack big time. It's easy probably because God isn't there giving us an audible voice of "Scott, where are you?". Inside I feel guilty, but I think that maybe God didn't notice my absence. We're in a world where we try to do too much in a normal day. We try to multi-task. Some mornings my prayer time is while I am driving. Driving? What? I have to pray that no one cuts me off because how bad would it be if I got mad while I was praying?? I say that in a funny way, but my point is that we don't build God into our day. We give God our "extra" time, and normally we don't have any quality extra time. Say our time with God was time equivalent to a doctor doing open heart surgery. Would you want him doing the operation after a long day, or when he is in his rested & alert stage of the day?
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