Into the Fire

When some people are distant from the Lord, they tend to doubt the closeness others possess with Him. There are those who don’t really believe He speaks to His people. In fact, they show evidence of disdain for believers who suggest the Lord told them to do something.

Most Christians have experienced those who’ve misread or prevaricated messages supposedly given to them by God. Most Christians have known those who have locked onto a particular scripture or belief system and modified it to suit their own purposes. And most Christians have known those who have believed false teachings—not just controversial topics. No doubt all of these people exist and do damage to the faith of others at times.

Devotion to God does not come in a half baked form. Devotion is an all out passion and loyalty created from the love for something or someone who is valuable above all others. You don’t treat God like a distant relative. He is above all things. He is not just another habit, hobby, or hyperbole. He is worthy of uninhibited praise and worship. He is the only One worth seeking after and following. If anyone thinks devotion can be haphazard and convenient, think again. It has requirements, and if you’re devoted to someone or even something, you want to adhere to them.

Believers have the wonderful opportunities to enhance their relationship with the Lord throughout their lives. It never has to stop. There are times when it is tough to do, when the prayers come out forced, when the spiritual air is as arid as desert heat, and when sorrow or trials overwhelm us. We don’t really understand the sovereignty of God in the midst of these struggles. We admit that He is, but somehow knowing it doesn’t always make it easier to accept. We weep, we strain, we worry and stress out, but Jesus stays the same. The same Savior, the same Lord, the same Rescuer, the same God. The Holy Spirit is steady, in the stillness, everlasting, always there. God is always on the Throne, never to be removed, troubled, befuddled, or unawares. The Strong Tower, the I Am. We need never fear, but we do.

When someone forgets what God has done, when the Cross pales and Jesus is no more than a cuss word, when the Holy Spirit has no voice, still, small, or otherwise, there is trouble in the afflicted heart. The voices of the hell-bound hordes have overridden the Voice of heaven and proposed a plausible deception to insure a hardened heart.

The Gospel is secure. Even if we don’t believe it, it will continue to be the Truth. Our unbelief, our distance and resistance to it, our resentment of it will not cause it to cease and desist. God still speaks to His people in all the multitudes of ways He has always spoken to them. And, just as they used to do in the Old Testament and continued to do in the New Testament, some of them will not listen to Him, will not devote themselves to listening to His voice, and will deny the faith of others as being real and strong because theirs is not.

They seek to serve a god of their own creation, and he doesn’t fit the one true God. They have preferences they don’t wish to surrender in their qualifications of how God should be in their world. Either he’s more structured or he’s more lenient. But he’s not the way those other Christians insist he is, nor how the Bible portrays him to be.

God does amazing things in the lives of believers. Still. Forever. He hasn’t stopped. He won’t stop. If you’re not hearing Him, it isn’t Him who’s not talking. If you’re not listening, you don’t have to hear Him. Just don’t mock those who are listening, who are hearing, and who are obeying because they’re devoted to Him.

Father, help me to listen more closely. Help me to always hear your precious voice, your directions for my life. I want you above all others. You are my God, my Savior, my Spirit of Truth. Help me to never let go of you. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.