AWAKENING TO LONGING
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? My tears have been my food day and
night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” These things I
remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the
protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive
throng. Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your
hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
— Psalm 42: 1– 5
Day 1
Think.
How did you forget about God?
Journal.
In a notebook or on your computer,
write a brief history of how you grew distant from God (if in fact you ever
felt close to him in the first place). Describe how you feel about God right
now and why you want to find him.
Pray.
“God,
if you are real, make yourself real to me. Awaken in me the ability to see that
you are what’s missing from my life.” The “Thirty Day Challenge” is from the book: Finding Your Way Back to God by Dave and Jon Ferguson. Our thanks to them and Community Christian Church, Naperville IL for sharing this material with us.
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I'm thankful for the heritage God gave to me. No mom and dad were not perfect (sorry mom), but they did point the way to Jesus. Growing up in a Christian home no doubt saved me from a lot of heartache.
ReplyDeleteAs a young adult, I think "self" was perhaps my biggest problem (and "I" probably still am). I wandered away from God because I wanted to have fun. No doubt I found what I was looking for, but it wasn't enough. The fun left me empty; I was missing God. The LORD kept pulling me back to Him.
Today, I would say it is a combination of just being too busy and still my selfish desires that would cause me to grow distant from God. Perhaps that is surprising to some to think that a pastor would not always be close to God. Yet I'm just like you. Thankfully I have learned through the years not to wander too far; I quickly find myself coming back to my senses and turning back to God.
My prayer is to find God more in the midst of the day to day. Don't get me wrong, I have my routine reading scripture and praying. I'm often aware of God's presence through out the day. My hope is to not lose sight or not hear the LORD in the busyness of my routine. I just want to know God even more today than I did yesterday.