He Who Leads Me
I’m not bold enough to claim that God gives me the messages in these devotions, nor am I naive enough to think that I could write them without the Holy Spirit. I have mentioned that I check the churches website and when a new devotion is published, I read it.
Many times, I find a grammatical boo-boo that either I wrote or that inadvertently happened in transferring them from me to the website. But, as often or more often, I read what is there and I am astonished that I wrote it. That is when I know that the Holy Spirit has a huge influence on these writings.
I think it is a common human condition that we ache to have God talk clearly to us. Every time I read about Abraham or Moses or Paul hearing God directly, I find myself jealously wanting that kind of experience. When I read some of these devotions and know that I had a lot of help drafting them, my heart leaps with joy that God is using me and I am listening.
“When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” - Genesis 17:1-8 ESV
I was reading an article and one of the self-reflection questions that the author suggested was to stop and pay attention to where your mind is focused. Over the last several months, I have been doing just that. I will stop and see what my mind is focusing on. There is a lot of stupid thoughts and a few thoughts that I am embarrassed to have at all but I would say that most of those thoughts are centered around trying to put together thoughts for a future devotion. I hope that tells me that I am focusing on God and not (as much anyway) on myself.
“But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person’s thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one. “For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.” - 1 Corinthians 2:9-16
“And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.’” - Luke 9:23-27 ESV
God, you are sovereign and I desire with all my heart to follow you. Please send your Holy Spirit to help transfigure me to be more like you and less like me every day.
