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“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. He is faithful, loving, merciful, and always available to bless and encourage. Therefore, let us draw near to Him and He will draw near to us, with blessings in abundance.”
Stella
Worship
Word
Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord; the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.
1 Samuel 3:7
I once read of a Church Minister who preached exactly the same message for 6 weeks running. When he was challenged by disgruntled members, he gave them this answer, words to this effect, “When I see the Church putting it into practice I will move on to something else.” I think an area that everyone of us needs to work on is spending quality time with the Lord.
Young Samuel didn’t even recognise the voice of the Lord when the Lord called him those three times, but, on the fourth occasion having been instructed by Eli, he communicated with the Lord. The relationship between Samuel and the Lord developed to such an extent that he became a very godly man, such that the Lord could trust him with great revelation for we read:
And Samuel’s word came to all Israel.
1 Sam. 4:1
This meant that the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel through His word, and those words He revealed to Samuel, Samuel spoke them to all Israel.
This week I was speaking to a man who had become a Christian and was keen to get baptised. He was asking me how he can grow as a Christian. I told him two things, Read the Scriptures and pray for at least half-an-hour every day. He was shocked and wanted to know did I mean to pray for half an hour in one go. I know from personal experience that if we discipline ourselves to pray for a certain period every day, and keep faithfully to it, whether we are bored or not, fall asleep or stay awake, find it tough going, eventually, half an hour won’t be long enough. We should also spend a minimum of half an hour each day reading the Scriptures. Likewise, eventually, the day will come when half an hour won’t be long enough.
When Mandy and myself first started courting we spent time on the phone to each other. These times got longer and longer even into the early hours of the morning. It will be the same with our relationship with Jesus, half an hour won’t be long enough. I’m not going to write reams, for it is up to each one of us to DO this, to put it into practice, spend at least half an hour every day with the Lord in prayer and half an hour in the Scriptures. If we already do this then what about increasing it.
Quote of the week
“Walk so close to God that nothing can come between you.”
Author Unknown.
Verse of the week
As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?.
Psalm 42:1-2
Let’s Pray
Heavenly Father, we find it difficult to spend quality time with You on a daily basis, so many things seem to crowd this out. Help us Lord, by Your Holy Spirit within, to make You the number one priority in our lives and spend quality time in Your Word, and in Your Presence, in Jesus Christ, Amen.