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| My daughter and her beloved October 21, 2017 |
In my mind I can see the newlywed wife as she scurries
round the house straightening up, checking on the dinner cooking in the
kitchen, changes into a clean outfit and fixes her hair. Her beloved is coming
home. Throughout the day her thoughts have centered back on him. She has
planned a meal she knows he enjoys and has prepared this meal with a loving
touch. She is devoted to him for he has committed himself to her and expresses
his devotion through word and deed. The door opens and their eyes meet. The
object of her affection is now before her and it feels like home.
Morning
light has broken the dark hold of night. I move from my darkened room toward
the eastern corner of my home. Warm light filters in through the windows and
instinctively I draw near. I am here again and so is He. His letter to me sits
on the small table beside the soft chair. I faintly hear the birds gratefully
accepting their morning meal from the feeder hanging just outside and in the
stillness of the rooms I am reminded of a sovereign God’s watchful eye over all
His creation. I step into the embrace of my loving Father. I feel His deep love
for me and my deep need for Him. I must have this glimpse of glory in the
morning hours to prepare me for what I will face in the course of the day. My
eye meets His as I look into His Word and I hear His voice through the text on
the page; and it feels like home.
Why Ardent Devotion?
True love doesn’t
end with feeling but with action. How do I express love and gratitude to the
object of my affection? A love like I’ve never known was birthed in me when, upon
hearing the Gospel message, the realization of my great sins and His great
sacrifice tore through my soul. Profound guilt ravaged my conscience but with
the acceptance of His profound love for me was burned up and swept away by
desperate gratefulness and enormous relief. He saved my soul from the precipice
of the burning depths of eternity. Such love can only be expressed in ardent
devotion. Knowing that true love must be expressed in action, what would this ardent
devotion to Jesus look like in my daily life?
Absorbing the Glory of His Presence
To begin
with, I would give Him the first moments of my day in praise, prayer, and study.
Adoration of His name would be the melody line of my song of praise. I wouldn’t
miss a chance to sit quietly before the King of Kings, to hear from Him and to
break open the bread of life and sup with Him, gaining nourishment for my soul.
What an appointment to keep! What an opportunity to enter the holy of holies
and minister unto Him while, at the same time, being ministered unto! As Moses’
face reflected the glory of God from his time spent with Him, so should mine
glow not only from the flame of the Holy Spirit within, but also from my
morning time spent dwelling in the brightness of the glory of His presence.
As Unto the Lord
Secondly, I
would realize that God has placed me in a specific station or place of service.
In my life, wife and mother is a calling from Him, therefore I must seek to
fulfill those duties as unto Him. Practically speaking I would diligently keep
house and care for all those who live here and for all who would pass over this
threshold. I would see it as my duty to pray for them, to plan for them and to
prepare for ways to bless them. I would seek to press on in this ministry that
He has selected for me knowing it is my duty to enthusiastically encourage
other believers to keep on trusting Him and to grow their faith in Him and to
be a shining light that points to Christ for all those who have yet to come to
know Him, beginning first with those in my own home.
Practicing the Presence of Christ
Lastly,
ardent devotion would cause my thoughts to circle back around to Christ
continually throughout my day. To help my mind in this I would fill it with
thoughts of Him through Scripture and song so that my lips naturally speak of
Him and His work of grace in my life. Ardent devotion would cause me to understand
that all of life should be lived as before Him; every moment of everyday living
in constant communion with Him. “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose
mind is stayed on Thee: for he trusteth in Thee.” (Isaiah 26:3) A calm, content
stillness will possess my being as all thoughts are passed first through the
truths of God’s word.
The Beauty of Holiness
Psalm 29:2
calls us to “Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD
in the beauty of holiness.” The beauty of holiness spoken here is the adornment
of apartness and sacredness. A still and sacred holy place should be carved out
within me as a dwelling place for Him who filleth the earth with His blessings
and made the stars also. Have I been so foolish to forget that He is nearer to me
than breathing? Know I not that God moves with purpose and in love and that He
has chosen me a vessel fit for the Master’s use? I will stand in awe and seek
to live with the touch of God in my fingertips and the love of God in my eyes.
Holiness gives me a special kind of beauty that is well pleasing to my gracious
heavenly Father.
Sweet communion as beloved speaks with beloved and
lives his life yearning to please the other. True love must be seen in true
action. Married or single, God awaits your loving devotion to Him. “Thou wilt
shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand
there are pleasures for evermore.” (Psalm 16:11)
