I stopped because I was curious
Now I’m caught in Consuming Fire
I came because I was hungry
Now You are my Bread
I reached because I was thirsty
Now I am drowning, sinking
Dying to all that weighs me down
Buried by all that keeps You out
Now I am stirring, awakening
Living by Your breathe
Rising to Your voice
Guided by Your light:
You died that I might live
I die that I may live in You;
You in me now
Me in You forever
Maybe to many, Christianity is for fun. To me it is not. It is real and reality is tough. There is darkness but not without promise of dawn. There are gnawing pains and gushing joy. There are heavy burdens and the lightness of being borne under the wings of the Almighty…, the Almighty…. Who said it is easy being close to the Most Holy Almighty God? Check the Scriptures again and you will realize that if it’s nice and smooth all the way, it may not be God. If it’s all dark and dreary, doesn’t mean it is God either. Walking hand in hand with the Almighty who does not fear the things I fear is a dangerous adventure. The trip has its ups and downs but His sure promises keep us rising from glory to glory.
As we round up this session on “Intimacy with the Almighty,” I hope I have not scared you from drawing closer to Him – that is not my goal. I had to share the truth I know, the truth I am ever learning to live, about God and His ways which is very far from what the world paints Him as today. The world can’t teach us about God because the world doesn’t know our God. Even if it knew the truth, the world wouldn’t teach us that because it hates God and His ways. You can’t learn God from the media. We learn God from God and His Word. We learn His ways, live His will and become more like God through intimacy with Him.
My prayer for all of us this year is that we learn surrender with Him because we can’t draw close with our jargons and dross. I learned that drawing close to God is a refining process. Our God who is a consuming Fire draws us into the oven of His heart where the heat of His Majesty separates treasure from dross. The dross we must surrender, to be consumed in His fire so the treasure that we are can improve in quality. God is our Refiner and intimacy is a process by which He accomplishes that work of taking out the gross in us so the gold can glow.
My prayer for us is that we yield to the Fire that is our Father, that He may consume our ills and shame and though the process hurts, that we may enjoy the healing, the growing, the glowing that comes as a sure reward for our sincere surrender. As He draws us close, I pray that we argue not with Him. May we not turn our back even if we have to ask, “Why Lord?” May we not shy away as His sword of truth comes piercing, because this God…, He kills what should die that what may live will truly live. In this New Year, may we not shy away from intimacy with the Almighty.
Glory!