:: May I recognize God for who He is in all circumstances.
I've been chewing on this prayer all day. It started really resonating with me as I began applying it to previous seasons of my life - it caused me to recognize Him as redeemer and healer of all painful circumstances.
- this then furthered me into applying it to all the uncertainties I have in regards to my future - it caused me to recognize Him as a counselor, provider, and a God who is kind to His people...
then there is the here and now - and if I could grasp what the very essence of God is in the moment to moment - how different would my heart be? I think our hearts are transformed the more we are saturated with the concrete truth found in who God distinctly is.
What if I could live a single hour knowing whole heartedly that God is, for example, The Creator? Would I still get infatuated with Cezanne and Lautrec paintings at the Getty Museum?
What if I could live a single day wholly trusting that He is The Wise Shepherd... would I then still find such foolish comfort in the wisdom of the world? and would I continue looking to others to validate my own homegrown wit?
What if we actually believed that only God is wholeness. Would you still be settling for that human induced relationship that gives the illusion of a complete and happy you? Would we still search out quick fixes to the turmoil sin inevitably has caused within us?
Thank you Jesus, for everything You are. You are enough. The essence of who You are brings freedom to those who simply seek Your identity.
I think it is strangely important to fix our minds on the concrete characteristics of who God says He is in our everyday moments, rather than fixing our minds on things that were once dust.
Yes! We do need to fill our minds with the reality of God's character. It's not just an emptying of ourselves, but also a fullness of the Truths of Christ. We give up all other things, but then we're left with everything that is True.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this beautiful reminder. I need to meditate on the truths of God's character, personality and nature.
Recognition -- so important, so overlooked. Knowing AND Believing...it really allows all of our worries and earthly concerns to fade in His presence.
ReplyDeleteCaydin I LOVE this...and it's so spot-on! My friends and I were just talking about this last night...the times where I have been most in the HERE and NOW, and most fully in God's presences are the times when I have been reflecting on His character, HIs names, who He says He is...and trusting in that and believing in that. When we really know and believe that He is who He says He is....everything else just fades away. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeletecaydin-this is so good! dwelling on who He is changes everything. He is speaking so softly to our souls, "cease striving and know that I AM GOD".
ReplyDeleteThanks Caydin for sharing this! I think it is so true that we need to fix our eyes on who God is and rest in that. It is so easy to get caught up with the trivial things of this world and get bogged down, but like you said God is enough. That is so encouraging :)
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy reading your words. You have a sweet wisdom Caydin. "I think our hearts are transformed the more we are saturated with the concrete truth found in who God distinctly is." This is such truth! I'm also learning this in my life, realizing that the only constant is God and that apart from Him there is no good. If only we could LIVE OUT our belief in the Lord. I think it was Amanda that mentioned in a post one time about how drastically different our lives would look without our doubting hearts. We would have SUCH boldness. My prayer is that we will understand God more, trust Him more, be more like Him. Lots of love girl.
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking about this a few minutes ago, Caydin. Thank you for sharing how God is all that we need. The more we know the truth of God, the less we need to care about things that are so, so secondary. Let's continue to sharpen one another, encourage one another, to be bold and trust in him, his truth!
ReplyDeletecaydin, thanks for sharing. it's important not fix our eyes on things like art or human relationship as you mentioned, but also remember that those things can be more comprehensible images of what God's beauty or presence looks like. God's glory is too much for us, we can't look at it all at once, just like the sun. but the moon reflects the sun's light in a way that our eyes can handle, in a way that is still beautiful. i think in this same way art and human relationships can reflect the glory of God in a way we can understand. we can't let them replace God, but let's be sure to acknowledge his presence in them.
ReplyDeleteSuch an encouraging post, Caydin!
ReplyDeletePraying for you and all of us to grasp this discipline!
Love this ---> "Thank you Jesus, for everything You are. You are enough. The essence of who You are brings freedom to those who simply seek Your identity."
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this. God is so big and unfathomable to me that sometimes I am thankful that I cannot and will not ever be able to fully comprehend God. That would be too overwhelming! But at the same time I am in awe of the elusiveness of God. I love that He allows me to be awestruck at His power or at His love. I love being lost in the mystery.
ReplyDeleteGreat questions here. Great encouragement to helping us all think as well. Thanks!
ReplyDeletehmm. wow cayds. I actually need to just sit with this awhile. and let it infiltrate my soul.
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