Devotion

de·vo·tion

   [dih-voh-shuhn]

noun

1.

profound dedication; consecration.

2.

earnest attachment to a cause, person, etc.

I had an incredible drive to work this morning as I thought about devotion, and what it means. Devotion looks different all over the world, and throughout history. I have just begun Beth Moore’s study on Paul. I absolutely love it already. If you are searching for a weekday study, this might be a great one for you to consider.

 In Paul’s early life he likely had a very strict “devotion” to the law and the code of the Jewish people. This devotion really spoke to me as I considered my own. Orthodox Jewish men would, by the age of 13, already have many scriptures memorized. They would wake up in the morning and recite prayers, Proverbs, and Psalms before they even began their day. The law said these things must be done when there is “enough sunlight to recognize a casual acquaintance from a distance of four cubits”. Amazing.

A lot of Christians today might wake up in the morning and read through a “devotion”al – but how devoted are we really?

I have had a few incredible opportunities to travel to different countries and get a glimpse of other cultures. One thing always stands out to me in almost every place that I have been. People are devoted. In Thailand the people are devoted to their king, and to Buddhism. The country is filled with temples and statues. The people pause from shopping to take off their shoes and worship in a temple in the marketplace. Every car has a statue of Buddha. Devotion.

In Dubai the people are devoted to Islam. Several businesses are not open during Ramadan, and the people pray at the call to prayer throughout the day. They follow strict rules of dress and public activities in order to honor what they believe in. Devotion.

You can argue with me about this devotion. But it is a display of the definition of the word, and it stirs my heart to ask about my level of devotion. I do feel an “earnest attachment” to Jesus, His Word, and His love. I would sincerely like for my life to be “profoundly dedicated” and “consecrated” to this Truth. I am not saying that unless we all stop to pray at certain times of day, and keep statues in our car we are not devoted. What I am saying is, the devotion God is worthy of, is not always what I have given Him. I write this in case anyone else is on the same page and might need a little encouragement.

A favorite song of mine is Kristene Mueller’s, “All My Devotion”. A few lyrics that might inspire:

"Beautiful God
You're more than worth my time
You're more than worth these longings of my heart
Left unfulfilled
Just for a time …
Take it all
Take it all
Just give me Jesus
Just give me Jesus
I don't want any other Lover …"

He is more than worth, not just the longings of my heart, but my entire heart, my entire life, my entire being. There is no LIFE apart from Him.

The words that likely inspired Paul as a young person inspire me today, Deuteronomy 4:7 “What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to Him?” What a blessing He is.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.” Deut 6:5-6

With ALL my heart, with ALL my soul, and with ALL my strength – devotion, to the One true God, King of kings, Lord of lords, Almighty God of Love. 

Take My Life

“Beautiful Jesus, how can I bless Your heart?” A lyric from one of my very favorite songs, “Knees to the Earth”. Which goes on to say, “I owe my life to You, my Lord – here I am.”

How often do we ask God how He is going to help us in certain situations – how He is going to heal us, or heal them – how He is going to set us free from temptation – how He is going to provide when things look difficult.

I just wonder what our lives would look like if we woke up each day and said, “How can I bless YOUR heart?” Instead of, “How can You bless mine?” If every thought, action, response, and meditation was on being a blessing to the One who blesses – what joy that would bring, to us and to Him.   

He loves us so much – it’s staggering:

“How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He's the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in Him. Long before He laid down earth's foundations, He had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love, to be made whole and holy by His love. Long, long ago He decided to adopt us into His family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure He took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of His lavish gift-giving by the hand of His beloved Son.” Eph 1 :3-6 (MSG)

This is the kind of love that leads to a life of sacrifice – He has given everything to us and gave everything FOR us – which brings us to “Here I am”. With a heart like Isaiah’s when asked each day if we will “GO” and love His children may we say, “Here I am! Send me!” with passion and a sincere consent, that wherever He calls us to go we will go.

This excerpt from a Kelly Minter study has really touched my heart this week, “One of the most tragic ways for a Christian to spend her life is to be in the right place with all the right resources but without a willing heart.”

We are in the place of Isaiah – with the Spirit inside of us, having been cleansed by our King, Jesus “your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” Is 6:7

Will we respond with “How can I bless Your heart?”

A favorite hymn – written by Frances Ridley Havergal in 1874

Take My Life and Let it Be

Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise,

Take my hands, and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love;
Take my feet and let them be
Swift and beautiful for Thee,

Take my voice, and let me sing
Always, only, for my King;
Take my lips, and let them be
Filled with messages from Thee,

Take my silver and my gold;
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my intellect, and use
Every power as Thou shalt choose,

Take my will, and make it Thine;
It shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart; it is Thine own;
It shall be Thy royal throne,

Take my love; my Lord, I pour
At Thy feet its treasure-store.
Take myself, and I will be
Ever, only, all for Thee,

An Unworn Shoe

Do you ever think about the shoes in the back of your closet? Perfectly capable of being worn, perfectly capable of being used as they were intended to be used. But for some reason - there they are. In the back - just waiting to unlock the potential they have been given. To be used in the very way they were created to be used... just waiting for you to give them the opportunity.

This season sometimes has me feeling like the lonely pair of shoes. Or maybe just one shoe - because I am not a pair.
I often try to define the season that I am in. Sometimes I perfectly address the environment I find myself in, and sometimes I stop and tell myself, "just let it be, sometimes there are not definitions or answers for our questions."
In conversation I often find myself responding exactly as I need to in order to answer those questions.
Today it was with a very dear friend over coffee in a Kroger Starbucks. This friend has often been my sounding board, and always is encouraging. I could never be more grateful for someone to whom I can be accountable, and laugh until we cry and almost wet ourselves. Who could ask for more in life?
We talked about life, the ups and downs, and I came to this analogy. I feel like the pair of unworn shoes. Like God has given me an incredible passion deep inside to do something. He has created me to be someone who only I could be - but yet I feel unused. This is the waiting - sometimes it is a beautiful time of just enjoying time with Him, and sometimes it is a difficult time of wondering "when?"

God has created me to do something in this life - and I am so excited for that something, that I often get inpatient. However, I still don't really know what it is. So I ask, and I ask, and I ask. One thing I do know. He calls and He equips and He opens doors. All I have to do is walk faithfully the path that leads to that door. In my favorite shoes.

Character Reference

Character reference: something that recommends (or expresses commendation of) a person or thing as worthy or desirable.

Character references are often asked for by potential employers. I was thinking about that this morning, and what it means to be able to reference someone else’s character. If you needed a personal character reference, you would likely have someone you have known for a while to write it for you. The only way to really know someone’s character is by having a relationship with them over time. Any person can fool you for a short while, but when you have been through the difficulties of life with someone, they will truly know your character and you will know theirs.

Character: Moral or ethical strength OR A description of a person's attributes, traits, or abilities.

This got me thinking about who we are, and what we are doing with our lives.

If we believe that God, the Father, sent God, the Son, who then sent God, the Spirit, to walk with us, live in us, set us free, and give us new life – How is that changing how we daily live? When you spend time with the Lord in prayer, and reading the Word (inspired by the Spirit) you begin to know and understand His character – to the extent that we are able to understand it. Living our lives with the Spirit dwelling inside of us, like scripture says (1 Cor 6:19), means that we have an extraordinary ability to love and know God. So, with our lives comes the ability to give a character reference for God (the Father, Son, & Spirit). We get to recommend HIM to others as worthy and desirable! And HE IS.

The question then is, do other people believe that by the way we are living? Does the way we act, think, and react REALLY recommend God? Do people look at us and believe that God is who He says He is by the way we live our lives? Do they know HIS attributes, traits, and abilities by spending time with us - His children? We should know Him better than anyone, we are His followers. We should know WHO He is from His Word and by the things He has done in our lives. We ARE living testaments to the power, love, and reliability of our Savior.

Does your life make other people want Him in theirs?