true consecration

I came to the piano to sit and play through some worship songs this evening, and was just blessed to be in the Lord's presence.  It seems that often times this is the place the Lord seems to help me sort through the worries and commotion in my brain and process the different experiences I've faced in the past few days.  

It was in this time after a rough couple of weeks at work and not enough sleep... that I was able to again reflect and see the Lord's goodness and faithfulness ... even when things to us look somewhat cloudy, and when i've felt that it was difficult to press on... the Lord has given so much grace.  

After such a refreshing meeting with the body of Christ today, and a rekindling of the theme of consecration...I was reminded when I was playing through some hymns, that the Lord wants full control.  Often times when I say I'm giving something up to the Lord, I may let it go in a physical sense, and outwardly look as if it's not bothering me... but often times I still let these things plague my mind and my heart.  And I've realized that this is not true consecration, because true consecration is followed by peace.  

When I've truly given something up to the Lord, I have known great freedom afterwards, and have been filled with joy and peace, because in replace of whatever I've given to the Lord, I receive more of the Lord himself... and what a blessing that is!

But when I say to the Lord ...here you can have this... and then continue to let it rule over my decisions... i.e. how I spend my money.  Or if I say oh yes Lord, I do need to give my future up to you... and continue to analyze and try to figure how everything is going to pan out.  These ways are not true consecration.  

A brother in the Lord once shared, Isaac was not just a wee lad when he went on the alter, he was probably a young strapping man, and could have easily overtaken his father, Abraham, when God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac.  But Isaac must have had to have known what was going on in some sense, and was willing to have his hands bound by his father... and willing to go to the alter, and in doing so he helped Abraham obey the Lord. 

Are we willing to have our hands bound by the father, and go to the alter without argument?

If not, may the Lord teach us how to say "Lord, make me willing" as our brother F.B. Meyer said to the Lord when he was not able to give up to the Lord something that was very special to him.  

In true consecration we find that once we give up control we are blessed with such freedom in the Lord.  When we go through our lives point by point and lay each part of our decisions, and how we spend our time,  how we spend out money, giving up our future, and where we choose to meet for church gatherings, giving up the right to our job, and a perfect family, and letting go of the worldly influences we've let into our lives.  When we bring these things before the Lord one by one, and truly consecrate them to the Lord...it's like the chains that the world has on our limbs are gradually loosed... so we have one part of us that is for Jesus only, Jesus ever and then we give up something else and another part is freed to be for Jesus only, Jesus ever.       

This sounds hard, but once it is done... the blessing of having more of the Lord is beyond your wildest dreams worth it. He is soo good.  and He is more than enough.  What a wonderful Lord is Jesus my King.  :)

May we learn to lay it all down and let it go to the alter... that the Life of Christ might be Lord in us, and that we might know more of His presence.  :)

"Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship" - Romans 12:1

the desert

so many friends have been going through a time in their life lately where they have felt like God has pulled them out into the wilderness.  a so-called long and windy road to the promised land.  so many seem to be experiencing this pull from the Lord to get out of the world, and to just come and be alone with the Lord.  A place full of uncertainty, full of questions, full of our own attempts to satisfy this longing within for something more...  

in my own life the Lord has challenged me recently to give up some things that I have held on to for too long.  To give up my expectations of how my life is going to turn out, and to learn to be satisfied with the Lord, even if He is  all I ever receive, is He enough?

"And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?
        My hope is in You" - Psalm 39:7

He's also challenging me to simplify my life, to put away the overkill of technology, put away the time wasted doing things that have no eternal value, and to learn to take more time to sit before Him, take more time searching His word, and focusing on what His purpose is in each day, learning to not forsake the little things he asks of us.  

...when the israelites were in the desert, they had 2 certainties, 1 - that when they woke up every day, there would be manna there for them to collect, and  2 - the pillar of cloud/fire would always lead them to their next place.  But what caused them to stumble time and time again... is when they sought out egypt, when they saught things that were more pleasing to the eye and fulfilling to the senses, like the golden calf.  They got caught on complaining because they did not trust the Lord.  They had no vision of the promised land, and started getting tired of waiting for the Lord to act.

Do we get tired of waiting for the Lord to act?  Honestly?

... you know why this is?   .. it seems to me that this is because we are waiting for the blessings of God, and not actually waiting on the Lord Himself.  For if we were to wait upon the Lord Himself, we would know His satisfaction.  As a friend recently reminded me of a hymn "once it was the blessing, now it is the Lord" (http://www.biblebelievers.com/simpson-ab_himself.html).

It is a hard thing to go through the desert in our Christian walk.  It feels alone, it feels deprived of "good feelings", it feels lacking in revival... and at times the light seems dim.  But every day the Lord gave the israelites manna, and He lead them by the cloud/fire, and this was certain.  This is also certain for us that He will provide us with Himself, the bread of Life, and He will be our portion for each day.  And he promises to lead us and tell us to move when the time is right (note that the timing is not always when we think it should be).
He will not leave is us in the desert, but this time is so very much needed in our Christian life.  We need to learn to be set apart from the world, we need to learn to be attracted to the Lord without all the blessings, and learn to know the Lord as our portion, our one true Blessing.  Is this not a true test of our faith?  When everything else is pulled out from under us... are we still seeking the face of our Lord?  ..."to whom else shall we go?" -john 6:68
...and when we come into fellowship with our glorious Lord, how precious it becomes to sit at His feet and wait before Him like Mary did.  To listen to his voice, and to know our God, who defines love.  His voice penetrates all the stuff that we've built up as our "protection" as our "security" as our "hope" ... and He shows us by His gentle hand that He Is ENOUGH, and so much MORE than enough.  He is the overflowing fountain that wells up within us when deep calls unto deep.

..so may we not be discouraged that the Lord brings us into the desert because of His love for us.  So that we might depart from all that is all is of the flesh and of the world and enter into all that is good and right and pure and loving and just and holy, etc... that which is of God and is everlasting and with purpose.

May we learn to eat of his manna and be filled and wait for his word before we move.