There are certain words that seem to resonate deep within my soul. Words that can come in the form of a whisper and still leave me breathless. Words that are hard for me to fully, or to be completely honest even partially, receive and yet I deeply long for them. I believe I was actually created for them.
Thinking back through my early faith building years I remember a very profound instance where God opened my eyes to my desperate need to not only hear these precious words of love he was speaking over me but to receive & believe them as well.
It was about 10 years ago, we had a few dear friends that met in our home every week for small group. One of our Pastors was a member of our dynamo group. I am telling you, this guy has a way about him - he LOVES Jesus! When you are around him you want just a smidgen of his passion for God - he knows Him and he LOVES HIM - no doubt about it.
One evening as we were going around the room sharing our stories our dear Pastor friend turned to me and he spoke words that would forever change my view of who God truly is. He turned to me and spoke these simple words:
"Kim, God LOVES you, He DELIGHTS in you... He thinks you are SMART!"
I literally could not take it. The impact these few words had on me were like an earthquake cracking the wall of a dam... the floodgates were opened and my bound up need for a desperate kind of deep abiding love was visible for all to see. Tears began to stream down my face and the reality of my false beliefs centered in insecurity were exposed. That evening, and far beyond, I would ponder on why those words spoken in that moment, by that person would be so powerful, so deeply meaningful to me.
Somehow the voice of a friend speaking God's truth into my very personal, longtime hidden, thought/heart life opened up a hunger for more of God's word. It was like a balm to a long festering heartache that had been fiercely protected in secret. The love of the Father identified & located the unspoken pain buried deep within me, it broke through the protective barrier and ministered straight to my long awaiting broken spirit by words from the truth of His word. Simply B E A U T I F U L ! What a love story.
He literally came after me and pursued me in complete, trusting love - and He still does. His word never disappoints. He LOVES us and is just waiting to show us that He is the rescuer of our souls. He is where we find the desires of our heart. His word brings us LIFE! It is POWERFUL! It will even meet us in the areas where we aren't aware there is a hurt yet. He is our comforter and our strength. He LOVES to come to our rescue - His words show this over, and over, and over again. That is why I LOVE IT!
One of my very favorite things to do is pick a theme and make out scripture cards. Give me some index cards, a fine point sharpie & a Bible and I am on my way to some quality Jesus time. Digging through the words to find the treasure waiting for me...ahhh. I can't tell you how much I enjoy this process - searching up my favorite version of the verse and writing it out - maybe even adding in a little doodle factor. For me this is an adventure - it keeps me in a place where I am excited to see what God has been waiting to show me.
This weeks set of cards was made up of :
Psalm 51:6 esv
Psalm 139:17 msg
Psalm 52:16 net, esv, the voice & Young's Lit
Psalm 52:8-9 amp
Matt. 6:30 msg
Rev. 3:19 msg
Psalm 27:5 msg
1 John 4:18 msg
1 John 4:16 esv, cev
Psalm 54:4 net, esv, living Bible, Names of God Bible
Matt 28:18-20 niv
Read through them and see if you can figure out what my theme was.
Now get creative and start having fun digging in God's words. If you are like me and love to doodle this is a great activity - fun for the kiddos too.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
-Simply Sublime
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