Sometimes Jesus calls us away with Him. He wants our rapt attention. Or He just desires us to simply BE with Him. No agenda, no doing - just BE there. He called His disciples to BE with Him when He prayed in Gethsemane. He called them to come away to a quiet place when they had been spiritually and physically spent (Mark 6:31; NIV).
... and He calls you too. To just BE with Him. No matter what's going on in your life. No matter the good, the bad, the joy or the struggle. He calls you to just BE with Him.
One of my favorite Scriptures-the one that drew me ever closer to the Father's heart-is Song of Solomon 2:10 (NIV):
My lover spoke and said to me,
"Arise, my darling,
my beautiful one, and come with me.
I remember when this portion of Scripture moved me so deeply. The soothing, lovely words personalized God's love and desire for my company. The words fell on my busy heart, soothing it with with His sweet agape. At that point in my life, I had been all about DOING for the Lord, not BEING with Him. In a single moment, He gave me a new awareness. This lesson was sweet; the attention, tender.
Realization of BEING in God's presence took on a brand new meaning. If I DO because He calls me to, I DO with and in His presence - LINGERing. If I just BE, I'm still in His presence - LINGERing. And the same goes for you. Nothing changes.
LINGER in the DOING; and LINGER in the BEING. Both are equally important. Both are vital in relationship with Christ. It is what He desires. It is His good plan. And it is preparation for a grand eternity.
A Bit About Me...
- Sharen Watson
- Living moment-by-moment, breath-by-blessed breath, knowing each second is sacred to God. Though He lives not in our time, He is with us constant. And we with Him. "See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands." Isaiah 49:16
Only if you'd like...
Posts
Comments
For more together time...
Kindest of Agents...
Help for Hurting People...
3 comments:
What a great reminder- to purposely be in His presence without agenda, just hanging out with Jesus. Oh what joy.
I find that sometimes lingering comes easy and other times I have to really work at slowing down to linger. In times like these, I feel the need to go deep into nature. I'm never disappointed. He always meets me there.
Once I get to that place of stillness, there is such a peace...one that really does surpass my understanding. The difficulty for me is slowing down to get to the point of stillness. Slowing down, not only my body and my schedule, but moreso the thoughts racing through my mind and the emotions tugging at my heart.
Glad I slowed down to read your thoughts...reminding me to slow down and be still so I can listen to His.
Jan... You're right. Purposeful lingering does take effort. We almost need to calendar it in. Or perhaps I should change that to... We do NEED to calendar our Linger time. AND as far as nature goes... Yes, God's creation always invites Linger moments.
Nancy...I'm glad you stopped by to Linger too. I agree. There IS that place of peace that passes our human understanding. Meeting the Lord there is well worth the time spent to get there. And you know what? The simple invitation to Him into our LInger moments brings that peace faster than we can comprehend.
I'm with you, there are all sorts of things that clutter my mind and emotions on any given day. Clearing the clutter with a few moments of prayer about all of it (the clutter) prepares our spirit for optimal Linger time.
Post a Comment