This summer has been astounding. Correction: the Lord is astounding. June and July have been abundant in blessing, joy, compassion, and revelation. God is good. He longs to bless his children in any way he can, and he will grant the desires of their hearts. Tread carefully here, he doesn't grant the desires of our fleshly, worldly, selfish hearts- he grants the desires of our redeemed, restored, reborn hearts. Those hearts, touched by Christ, eventually desire the will of God. Deep deep down, we all have inner passions, goals, and longings that were planted by our Creator. The sweetest offering we can bring before the Father is the thing that has the power to depress and elate, to give or steal, to wound or encourage: our hearts.
To seek the praise of God is to seek fulfillment, but to seek the praise of man is to seek destruction. Nearly every sin I've committed is rooted in my tendency to throw my heart to men. I long for recognition, intimacy, encouragement, stability, and love. These longings are made perfect in Christ, but are devastated by men. I was a withered tree, doomed to dormancy and idleness; I was burdened with pride, selfishness, lust, and hatred. These past few weeks, I've focused in worship and prayer on giving the Lord my entire heart, and he's brought fruit from my withered soul.
Pursuing Christ has rocked my world, y'all. He's showering me with such abundant blessing, I couldn't dry off if I tried. Every prayer, minute and massive, has been answered- especially this past month. Preceding a recent trip to Colorado, my youth pastor encouraged our student ministry to ask the Lord what he wanted to reveal to us in the mountains. For several months now, I've been begging God to connect me with people who were passionately chasing after him. When I shut my eyes to pray, however, the word "calling" flashed through my mind. "Destiny" quickly followed. So I prayed. I prayed every day for a week that the Lord would reveal my calling and destiny. After that week, the longing was buried under fresher desires, as the dearth of direction for my life widened. Praise be to God, for he neglects nothing. A week after I'd ceased my fervency, I had a vision of what God has always planned for me to do, what he planted in my heart long before I was conceived. My calling was revealed. I don't feel a peace about sharing it just yet, but please recognize the Lord's faithfulness in this. He is a loyal lover and friend, a caring counselor.
Not only has God revealed my calling to me, but he's also connected me with a few amazing, indescribable, passionate people who are sprinting after the cross. I have no doubt that these people will partner alongside me in the pursuit of God, and they love me just as he does. Y'all, he desires to satisfy our every craving, our every need. He wants our hearts! Our slimy, filthy, abused and sinful hearts! He turns our beauty to ashes and rescues the lost sheep. There's nothing more beautiful than the soul of a person who's recognized their deep need for the Gospel. Let his radiance glow within you, and his spirit work through you. Dedicate your everything to Christ, and he will bless it!
