Hungry: Worship Devotional

Hungry: Worship Devotional

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“Hungry I come to YouFor I know You satisfy“

Hungry, Vineyard Worship

“For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.” Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

John 6:33-3, NIV

Many of us have reached adulthood and have been privileged enough to never know real physical hunger. The hunger of not having eaten in days. The kind of hunger that leads to emaciation, fainting and convulsions.

Spiritually, however, most of us are in that state today. 

The kind of hunger that consumes and keeps consuming like a black hole.

The kind of hunger that no amount of drugs, sex, food, entertainment, money, fame or viral cat videos can satisfy.

I remember in our Gynecology and Obstetrics course at the Medical Academy, we talked about the cravings that pregnant women get – and how sometimes the cravings were misrepresented by the brain.

For example, a mom-to-be might crave ice or even sand – but eating these things will have negative consequences for the baby as it doesn’t satisfy the nutritional requirement being sent to the brain. What the baby really needs at that stage is IRON – so iron-rich foods or a supplement would be a better choice. Eating sand or ice would leave the baby with an iron deficiency instead.

And so it is with our spiritual lives. Our innermost craves reconciliation and communion with God. Our inner self knows that only Jesus can satisfy the longing and the thirsting of the soul – but the carnal mind misinterprets and misrepresents this craving – this hunger – and leads us down the path to deficiency instead.

Only Jesus can comfort, heal and restore. Only Jesus through the work of His Holy Spirit in us can satisfy.

Psalm 84:2: My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

This is where we find ourselves today – right now – in this moment. Hungry, thirsty and trying to fill that hole deep inside with all kinds of things instead of turning to Jesus.

He is the Bread of Heaven. Those who partake in Him will never hunger again.

Jesus is calling.

He is saying, “come and drink the Living Water, come and thirst no more. Come and eat the Bread of Heaven – come and be satisfied!”

No more eating sand.

No more eating dirt.

Come and be filled. 

Pray with me: Lord, I am hungry, and I am thirsty. I realize today that nothing in this world can fill that hole except for You. It is a God-shaped hole. Lord, come and fill me. Come and restore, come and revive me. Jesus, come and satisfy the longing of my soul. Come and heal me of my loneliness, my emptiness – come and find me again. Come and fill me Lord with Your love, Your goodness and Your grace as I swing wide the doors of my heart to You anew today. Let me hunger and thirst for righteousness and live a life pleasing to You. In Jesus name. Amen.

 

 

New Wine

New Wine

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“In the crushingIn the pressingYou are making new wineIn the soilI now surrenderYou are breaking new ground”

New Wine, Hillsong

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

Romans 5:3-5, NIV

The Gospel is and has always been about transformation. It has always been about the process through which God, finding a wretch like me, through His amazing grace, turns me into a son and heir.

In a conversation about fasting Jesus tells the pharisees that new wine is meant to be poured into new wineskins.

And there are a lot of sermons to be written about this phrase, and a lot of lessons to be learned – a wealth of wisdom to mine from this passage – but as I read it all I can think about is the pain in the process.

Everything from the wine to the wineskin is a process of trampling, crushing, pressing, waiting, fermenting – things that our fastfood, instant gratification culture have grown to hate. The grapes are grown with love, patience and vigorous pruning after which the grapes are plucked from their comfort and trampled, crushed, pressed. The barrels the wine gets fermented in is made of wood – a process of cutting, chopping and lashing together with bands of metal (which has gone through a process of melting, forging, forming and shaping) – and finally poured into the wineskins made from the skin of a lamb or a goat which had to offer up its life for the privilege of carrying this new wine.

As Christians we are always going through processes. We don’t realize it – because we want everything now! 

No wonder Paul places such great emphasis on waiting, enduring and  being patient.

It blows my mind that the wineskins are made from the skin of a lamb or a goat – and that this creature had to give his life for this process. An act of surrender.

Are we willing to give our lives to carry the new wine – the anointing – paid for by the suffering of Christ – to a hurting world?

Are we willing to give our lives to carry the new wine – our testimony – begotten by our pain, trials and tribulation – to a hurting world?

You might be in the process right now – but I want to urge you to seek God in the pruning, the pressing, in the crushing – in the pain of the process and surrender. Surrender to His loving hand and I can guarantee you that you will come out on the other side better than you could have ever imagined. Your breakthrough is just on the other side of this process. Your victory is just on the other side of this process – and even more so – someone else’s victory through your testimony is on the other side of this process.

After all, His ways are higher than our ways, His plans are better than our plans. He has plans for you – plans for good and not for evil. Plans for a hopeful and prosperous future.

Trust God in the process. Surrender to Him knowing that He is going to turn your test into a testimony, your misery into a ministry and your mess into a message. Trust God in the process and He will not only restore you but use you to restore others as they hear your testimony, look at your life and taste and see that the Lord is good.

Pray with me: Lord, I yield to Your loving hand, in the pressing and in the crushing. In the breaking of new ground. Lord, I realize that there might be pain in the process. The process might not always be pleasant, but I thank You Lord that Your plans for me are good and that if I trust You, wait on You and yield to You I will come out beautiful on the other side. Give me the strength to push forward and to wisdom to endure. In Jesus mighty name. Amen.

 

Lion: Let The Lion Roar

Lion: Let The Lion Roar

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“Hail, hail Lion of JudahLet the Lion roar“

Lion, Elevation Worship

“Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him.“

Psalm 68:1, KJV

I have been rereading the book of First Samuel, and a striking passage is found at the very start when Hannah prays her prayer of thanksgiving.

1 Samuel 2:1: And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Lord, mine horn is exalted in the Lord: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.

Earlier we read that she was one of the two women Elkanah had married – her sister-wife being Peninnah. We find out in chapter 1 that Hannah was barren and Peninnah had given her husband children – yet Elkanah loved Hannah more. His love for Hannah made Peninnah jealous and she was mean to and constantly provoked Hannah – taunting her, embarrassing her… To the point where Hannah would not even eat at Shiloh.

Hannah had an enemy – taunting her, berating her, provoking her, humiliating her.

An enemy that told her at every occasion that she was not good enough.

But God had plans for Hannah – and for all of Israel and the world through her.

You have an enemy today – an enemy that taunts and berates, provokes and humiliates – an enemy that tries to break you down and tell you that you are not good enough.

This might be a person, a situation, a mindset or even a condition of the heart.

But God has a plan for you.

The Psalmist writes in Psalm 68:1-4:

Let God arise,
Let His enemies be scattered;
Let those also who hate Him flee before Him.
As smoke is driven away,
So drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
But let the righteous be glad;
Let them rejoice before God;
Yes, let them rejoice exceedingly.

St. Augustine, writing about Jesus, risen and exalted, says the following: “He endured death as a lamb; he devoured it as a lion.”

I want to take this a step further. Not only did Jesus endure death – for the Bible teaches us that He knows our weakness, He understands our trials and our tribulations (Hebrews 4) – and in doing so, in putting on flesh and enduring our humanity – He devoured not only death, but also our weakness, our frailty, our poverty, our affliction, our suffering – the Lion roared on the Cross that day saying “IT IS DONE!”.

The Lion roared on the Cross that day and the curtain that separated us from the presence of the Almighty tore. The death warrant the enemy had been holding over your head tore…

The Lion roared on the Cross that day and His enemies were scattered.

There is a lot of meaning in names. We often call Jesus the Lion of Judah.

The name ‘Judah’ is translated as meaning ‘praise’ or ‘praised’ (Genesis 29:31-35).

Jesus is the Lion of our praise. Not only is He worthy of our praise – but He is also the origin of our praise.

He is our praise. He is our power. He is our peace. He is our provision. He is our victory.

When the Lion roars the valleys are raised up and the mountains are made low. When the Lion roars our enemies are scattered.

When the Lion roars we can say like Hannah did – My heart rejoiceth in the Lord, mine horn is exalted in the Lord: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.

When the Lion roars His people roar with praise.

Prayer: Lord, come and roar in my life today. Let the enemies of self-doubt and insecurity scatter. Let the enemies of pride and arrogance scatter. Let the enemies of fear and depression scatter. (I encourage you to name the thing that is bothering you today) – Lord, let it scatter! Let my enemies be driven away like smoke. Lord, come roar in my life today. I declare that You are my provision. I declare that You are my healing. I declare that You are my restoration. I declare that You are my victory. Come and roar in my life today and I will roar with praise. I will testify, Lord of Your goodness and grace. In Jesus name. Amen!

Breathe

Breathe

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“This is the air I breathe
This is the air I breathe
Your holy presence
Living in me”

This Is The Air I Breathe, Hillsong

“And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.“

Genesis 2:7, NKJV

Jeremiah 29:13-14:  “You will seek (baqash) me and find me when you seek (darash) me with all your heart.  I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity.”

As a former addict and alcoholic I spent a lot of time in 12 Step Meetings. One of the hardest hitting ideas in the Twelve Steps to me personally is step 11: “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.”

CONSCIOUS CONTACT. When we look at the Word spoken through Jeremiah in the passage above we see that the Lord does not hide Himself from us – He isn’t hard to find – but it takes a sort of effort from our side.

Looking at the Hebrew words BAQASH and DARASH in this passage we find that the Lord requires two things of us.

“Baqash’ is also translated as ‘desire’, to ‘plead’ or ‘beg for’ and to ‘aim’. 

‘Darash’ is to get up and go looking, to ‘ask’, to ‘study’, to ‘call’.

What God is saying is: “I WILL BE FOUND BY YOU when you DESIRE ME, set your sights on Me – HUNGER AND THIRST for Me – and then ACT ON THAT DESIRE by LOOKING, by ASKING, by STUDYING, by CALLING.”

Our ‘contact’ with God needs to be ‘conscious’ – born of desire and pursued with action. Our ‘contact’ or ‘finding God’ should be intentional – an exercise in mindfulness.

I would like to add the word ‘constant’ to the mix.

Scripture encourages us to ‘pray without ceasing’ (1 Thes. 5:16-18, Luke 18:1:), to pray about everything (Phil 4:6:), to meditate on His Word day and night (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 1:1-2:) – Scripture encourages us to be consistent in our efforts for ‘conscious contact’. Scripture calls for CONSTANT CONSCIOUS CONTACT.

The Psalmist in Psalm 116 proclaims: I will praise Him as long as I live –  as long as I have breathe in my lungs – I will praise Him!

In Genesis 2:7: we read that God breathed life into Adam – and his lungs reacted – expanded, inhaled, exhaled… 

If worship is our response to our Creator, our response to the goodness and glory of God (Psalm 116) then Adam’s response to his Creator was the first act of worship.

If we meditate on this a little bit we might come to realize that our worship, our prayer, our meditation – our seeking out the Lord should be as breathing to us.

Just like breath is life to the body, so also prayer, meditation, the study of His Word, and our worship is life to our souls. 

God wants to dwell in our midst – He doesn’t want to come and visit once in a while. He doesn’t need a holiday home. He wants to tabernacle here among us. He wants to establish His throne here and now in our hearts and in our lives. He desires to be with us.

And all we have to do is breathe.

All we need to do is start being present in His presence. Being mindful of maintaining that constant conscious contact with the Lord.

Worship should become a lifestyle. Prayer should become a lifestyle. His presence should be the air we breathe. His Word should be the daily bread that feeds and sustains us.

God is not hiding. He is just waiting for you to make a move

God is still breathing life into dry bones. It is time you let your lungs respond.

Prayer: Lord, right now I invite Your Holy Spirit to come and invade my life. Let Your love and presence flood my soul. Hear the longing and the thirsting of my heart as I acknowledge that I am lost without You. Bring water to dry places Lord, feed me and restore me. Give me the wisdom to seek You, and as I seek You let it become like breathing to me. Ignite a fire in my heart that burns for You – awaken and stir up a longing that desires You above all else – and as I seek You Lord, I know You are faithful. As I seek You Lord, do not hide Your face from me, but allow me to see and experience the beauty of Your presence in my life today. Amen.

Eagles Wings

Eagles Wings

by | Feb 25, 2024 | Devotionals, Worship Reflections

“Come live in meAll my lifeTake overCome breathe in meAnd I will riseOn eagle’s wings”

Eagles Wings, Hillsong

“He gives power to the weak,
And to those who have no might He increases strength.
Even the youths shall faint and be weary,
And the young men shall utterly fall,
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”

Isaiah 40:29-31, NKJV

God has in times past revealed Himself to us as God the Father – through the creation of the universe. He has revealed Himself as God with us when He took on flesh and walked in our midst as Jesus the Christ – the face, the grace and the embrace of God. Finally He reveals Himself as God in us and through us through the Holy Spirit.

In Romans 8:11: Paul describes the Holy Spirit as the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead.

We used to sing in the Afrikaans Pentecostal churches, ‘It’s the Holy Ghost and Power that is keeping me alive…”

The Holy Spirit is the life of God in us. The power of God in us. The Holy Spirit is the presence of God in us.

Paul continues and in Romans 8:14-16: 14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.

Elsewhere Paul writes and says, where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty – freedom! (2 Corinthians 3:17:)

God wants to give you that freedom today. He wants to give you that newness and freshness of life today.

In Romans 8 we read that famous declaration: “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us!”

The Holy Spirit is ‘The Mighty Conqueror” that Isaiah wrote about living IN us.

And if God is for us – if He is with us – and more importantly if He is in us – we can rise above every situation that the world can throw at us. We can rise above the works of the enemy. We can rise above the storm.

Eagles have the unique ability to fly above the storm – in fact, they use the storm to their advantage. They ride on the upper air currents and thermals, gliding above the turbulence of the weather down below.

Your storm might seem insurmountable – impossible – right now… But God wants to help you rise above it.

Just like the Eagle soars and glides effortlessly above the storm by resting on the drafts and currents – so too God wants to teach you to soar and glide above your storm by resting in Him.

It may seem impossible to you, but to God all things are possible.

Some trust in horses and chariots – but we will trust in the name of the Lord (Psalm 20:7), for those who put their trust in Him will never be put to shame.

Those who trust in the Lord – wait on the Lord – find their rest in God, will rise up with wings as eagles.

Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Prayer: Lord, sometimes it is hard to trust. Help me trust in You today. I give you every anxiety, every fear and every insecurity knowing that you will take these ashes and give me beauty in their place. Help me soar like the eagle above every situation and circumstance in my life as I declare that the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives in me and will help me rise above the storm. I declare that I am more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus. Clothe me in Your strength. Clothe me in Your grace. Flood my life with Your love and peace as I go into this day with a new resolve – to wait upon You Lord. Write Your testimony on my heart. Write testimonies in and through my life. Come abide in me, Lord, I pray. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.