Day 3

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.—Philippians 3:10

The pursuit of Christ is the goal of every Christian.

That we can come before Him to delight in His presence is guaranteed by the trail He blazed before us into the heavenlies. There we can kneel with Him in quiet intercession or listen as He gently whispers a word of wisdom or a word of knowledge or a prophecy that we might continue His ministry on earth. There we become more like Him—for only as we are with Him do we learn to be like Him.

That we must share in His pain is the duty of every disciple, and the common result of every person who has heard His compassionate heart groan for the lost, suffering and dying.
That we long for the power of His resurrection is right and proper. That we possess it is the inheritance of all who believe—for He is the Resurrection and the Life.

But resurrection always follows suffering and compassion. Even as Christ was about to raise His friend, Lazarus, from the grave, He was twice deeply moved—even to the point of tears. Oh, how we want to be like Him in His power! But how few pay the price to be like Him in His death!

Prayer Topics: Christlikeness; Listen for His Heart; Groaning with Him; Compassion; Weeping.

Day 2

David wrote in one of his Psalms:
One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORDall the days of my life,to gaze upon the beauty of the LORDand to seek him in his temple.—Ps. 27:4

David sought the Lord’s glory during his life as the singular cry of his heart. Yet, despite all the majesty that may have emanated from the tabernacle, the glory David gazed upon could not have compared to the surpassing glory revealed to the three disciples at Christ’s transfiguration. The glory of the old—the law, the patriarchs, and the covenants—the glory found on Mt. Sinai—was fading before the glory on the new mount. For each miracle of Christ manifested His glory—veiled though it was in flesh—the glory of the Kingdom of Heaven breaking into this age. And His crucifixion displayed His glory despite such staggering suffering. For herein lies the greatest honor, the greatest demonstration of glory: to sacrifice oneself that the will of the Father may be done.

Shall the disciple’s path not pass through Gethsemane?

“One thing I ask, this is what I seek…” Is it His presence that we seek above all else? Can we like Moses refuse to go any further without His presence? To preach or teach without His anointing? To minister without first having gazed upon His beauty in prayer? Without first worshipping Him in the corporate gathering?

“One thing I ask, this is what I seek…” Has David’s cry become the cry of our hearts? Or are we distracted by “the cares of this life and the deceitfulness of riches?” What one thing can we declare to be the purpose of our life?

Prayer Topics: Desire for Him; A Singular Heart; Praise during Suffering; The Cares of this Life; Draw Near to God.

Day 1

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God,who loved me and gave himself for me.—Galatians 2:20

George Meuller once wrote:
“There was a day when I died:
- Died to George Mueller: to his tastes, his opinions, his preferences and his will.
- Died to the world—its approval or censure.
- Died to the approval or blame even of my brethren and friends.
“Since then I have studied to only show myself approved unto God.”

How foreign this is to us today—with all our approval ratings and polls! We boast of only seeking the approval of God, yet we relish the handclapping and pats on the back. Success is measured in numbers!

Yes, Christ had the crowds follow Him, waving the palm branches or eating the loaves and fishes. But more than once He confronted them with hard questions, or drove them away with difficult statements. He didn’t win friends by challenging, “You are looking for me…because you ate the loaves and had your fill.” He only gained enemies by commanding them to eat His flesh and drink His blood. In the end they played the part of all crowds, leaving Him for His offense. Gleeful to turn on Him. Abandoning Him to suffer. Leaving Him alone in the tomb.

Have we really died to the impulse of the crowd? Do we know how to stand when all others moves on? No cry of the crowd, no shout of the multitude, no roar of the throng means as much as these simple words from the only important One, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Is anything as important as the approval of the Lord?

Prayer Topics: Death and Life in Christ; Standing Alone; Approval and Rejection.

40 Day Devotional

One of my goals has been to write a 40-day devotional. I've actually written several individual devotions and collected them with some poems and short stories in a book called A Reed in the Wind. Before I publish this book, I wanted to write and add the 40-day devotional to it. The following postings contain the devotions as I write them. I've tried to focus on the important things.

Your comments and suggestions would be very welcomed.