Divine Encounters

CONSIDER
One day as I (Kirk) sat in my office, I was feeling particularly powerless, vulnerable, inadequate, and worthless. In my desperation I began to pray, “God, be real to me. Show me Your power. I need to experience You as real.” Truthfully, I did not anticipate the response I encountered from God. The Holy Spirit promptly said to my heart and mind, “The issue of My reality is not in question. Look at the birds, trees, and all of creation, even the fish in your aquarium. Do they not declare My glory? Why then do you say to Me, ‘Be real to me?’ I am as real as I am ever going to be! The issue at hand is not My being real to you, but when will you be real with Me?” I could not be aware of God’s relevance in my life until I was real with God.

BIBLE TRUTH
"The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven" (Heb. 1:3 NLT).

HOW DOES THIS APPLY TO ME?
Operating under the guise of submission, we petition God to make a difference in our lives. But when His Spirit speaks to reveal His plan, we continue on our own way, pretending not to hear His guidance. “Come on, get real!” Do you really want what God wants, or do you just say you want what He wants? When we assert that we want God to be ruler in our lives, we must become real with God by implementing the plan He has laid before us. Unless we are willing to employ His resources, we will never experience Him in a relevant manner.

PRAYER
God, I do not want to be a person who just honors You with my lips while my heart is far from You. I don’t want my worship to be a farce. Enable me to teach and live by Your plans and Your commands instead of my own. . . . (Matt. 15:8–9)


(excerpts from Desperate Dependency by J. Kirk & Melanie D. Lewis)


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