A Few Words

My muscles are sore and my heart has been challenged. Both happened while attending a christian wellness workshop this last weekend. We learned from truly anointed women gifted in the word, we feasted on His goodness and we worked our booties off too. Boy was God present in that church gym. It was a very powerful weekend to say the least. Besides working on some tighter glutes :) I also received a few words from the Lord while there.

Our Full Attention

I'm sure most people are well acquainted with the story Jesus tells about the narrow way. At the workshop they shared the verse in the traditional King James version along with The Message. Listen to how the message breaks it down:

"Don't look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention."

What a picture, huh!? Our teacher made it even more vivid when she described the narrow way as not just a separate path alongside the broad road but she described the broad way as a rushing river. When we accepted Christ in our lives, we stopped following the crowds that were rushing down and turned around. Just standing and facing the rapid river you are going to encounter some serious resistance and crashing water but expect even more when you take that path back up the river.

He deserves our total attention, not some quick and easy worship time. He should be getting it all. All our time, all our attention and all our praise. In everything we do it should be done for His glory; working out, walking the dog, cooking dinner and even doing laundry. The way to life is vigorous and requires total attention...

Our Hearts Desire

"Delight yourself in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He will act." -Psalm 37:4-5

I don't know how to start this other than to say that I have had some desires, even God honoring ones, that have become idols in my life. The human heart is a factory that produces all kinds of idols. An idol is basically something that replaces God as the ultimate desire of our hearts. Like I mentioned before, although some of our hearts desires may be good and wonderful things, when they become the main focus of our lives or our ultimate source of joy, they have gone on the fast track to becoming those pesky little things God commanded us to stay away from.

“There is a God-shaped hole in the heart of every person, and it can never be filled by any created thing. It can only be filled by God, made known through Jesus Christ.” -Blaise Pascal

Alisa Keeton from Revelation Wellness shared with us that even though many of our desires are good and may have even come from God, that we need to remember that the focus should still be Him. He is the one who is able to honor those desires or give us entirely new ones. When we realize that and rely on Him and not the event or thing we have our hearts set on, our lives will be complete. Trust in Him and He will act...

It was an amazing weekend spent with some inspiring sisters in Christ. The muscle pain will go away but His word will abide forever!