Journey to the never-dried up well #1

Forty days is a short time in a life-time. Yet much can happen - when we make regular time to be apart, away, alone - with God.

Welcome to our forty-day journey to the never-dried-up well !

taken from The Plough

"..for it is God who works to will and to do... " ~ Phil 2v13  

As we begin, it may be our reflex to begin dwelling on our 'desired outcomes', how we wish our hearts will be at peace, or how our circumstances would be turned around. We may come looking for some confirmation that our hunches are right; and hope to find swift wisdom in practical steps to quench our thirst.

But 

it.is.God who..

So let us begin the journey right - by abandoning ourselves to God as much as we know how. Maybe just to cry out, "Lord Jesus, here I am!"

An old song goes,

Jesus take me as I am

I can come no other way

Take me deeper into You

Let my flesh life melt away

Make me like a precious stone

Crystal clear, and finely honed

Life of Jesus shining through

Giving glory back to you.

You can use these words as a prayer as we begin.

Over the next flew days, repeat it. According to God's Word, He will work. He will work something in us that will cause us to lean, to seek, to desire, to will...and then, to do that will.

This verse is sandwiched between the words that call us to 'work out our salvation' and to 'shine as stars'. We know full well that we have an active part to play in our growth and maturity. We know too that we were meant to fill up with Light and shine. In each instance, our tendency is to work at it ourselves. The words, "it is God" is the pivot. There will not be any deepening or shine without God. 

The entire verse reads,

"for it is God who works in you to will and to do according to his good purpose"

What a wondrous reminder from our God. He has a good purpose in all this. He has a good purpose for you this forty days.

It. is. God.

In a way, this is the secret to -

Joyful discovery of God's will

Restful trust as we go about our seemingly nothing-has-changed-much days 

Knowing what to do when we don't know what to do 

Facing fear and standing still in the rushing waters

-- which, yes, are the practical manifestations of whether a soul is well-watered. 

{and do I want them to mark my life!}

Welcome. Bring a friend.

a little more of the Will-ing

Today. Yesterday. Tomorrow.
It's always been the same. All about the Will-ing.
See that little '-ing'?  My hazy memory of grammar reminds me it is an on-going thing.

Today, i needed to come to a place of Will-ing - again.

Based on my distant Yesterdays' experiences of Will-ing-ness, it meant long days of traveling inside my head and heart. Indeed, I had for the many days running up to Today still struggled with what my mind and heart couldn't wrap around. What happened? How did things turn out this way? Where did I go wrong? What next?

But of late, these questions no longer led to answers that deeply matter.

To will after all, is the exercise of all our powers after some object. Will-ing-ness becomes powerful when the object we will after is great enough for me to be stupefied into silent submission.

So I have let the questions, the tears, the pains heave and groan, spill out in words, tears and silence. They are not the object. Soon, their energy dissipates and the object of my heart's deepest desire begins to take on an increasing clear outline: it looks a lot like Jesus.

Prayer bit by prayer bit, I confess, Lord, lead me, I want to be willing.

I feel a strange something entering my being. It feels foreign and familiar all at once. I feel knitted together - like the cosmos of my swirling emotions, hormones, thoughts and more being drawn to a centre. I shake less. I whimper less. I find a break in time-space into eternity it feels. I find my next step. The best outcome will depend on many people and their will-ing. That i need to leave to Him. But me, I stand here, and Jesus asks, "are you willing?".

Journey to the never-dried-up well: a personal invitation

A personal invitation

Dear friend,

As a pastor-writer, my desire is to use words to build you up. Even as the dry spell persists around us, it reminds me of how much we need water, Living Water. Many of us long for a deeper refreshing, one that will affect us permanently. We want to experience the promise Jesus gave the woman at the well, that springs of water will well up and flow forth from us (John 4v13).

If this is your longing, I want to invite you to join me on a 40-day journey to reach that never-ever-dried up well.

Every five days, there will be a short reading and a reflection that I will post on my blog. You can bookmark and remind yourself to look it up or even easier, simply submit your email and it will be sent right to your inbox!  Other ways are available at the bottom of each post.
For those who prefer print, I suggest that you print it out so that you can refer to it.

It is a journey that I pray will lead us to more of the following –

more of the Word

I will be writing the reflections based on Scripture. You will need to read the scripture and let it sink it over the few days. This is a great way to know the Word better, deeper.

more of the truth

As you look over the reflections and let the Holy Spirit of truth lead you, God will take your hand to look at your life through his eyes. It will be 40 days of coming to know yourself better – through God’s eyes of love, compassion and freedom-bringing truth.

more of God's people

We are all encouraged by fellow travelers; so may I urge you to write short notes in the comment. Sometimes a comment by a fellow Christian can really lift us up. This way you will also realize that there are others on this journey too.

This journey will begin on March 10^th, part of the season of Lent – a 40 day period when Christians everywhere seek to be more sensitive to God and yield their lives to Him afresh. The Scripture reading and reflection will plow the soil of our hearts so that we can experience the meaning and power of Easter – the cornerstone of our faith – in a marvelous new way.

As an expression of this desire, a fast is often included in the journey. Fasting is not deprivation; rather, it is a proclamation of what we truly need to live. So if we fast from TV or desserts, we do so to so that these are not needful for our lives. Instead, we turn our hunger to Him, who alone feeds us in the truest and deepest sense.

Well, dear friend, I hope to see you on this journey!

and now, a song .. ..for music stirs our souls..

For more on fasting and Lent, consider Julia’s simple write-up :

http://www.christianitytoday.com/amyjuliabecker/2014/february/in-defense-of-lent.html