By Marni Montanez
Psalm 84:2
New King James Version (NKJV)
2 My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
There are times when we are so desperate for an answer or resolution we cry out to God from a place of fear or pain and ask that He save us from our circumstance. In these moments of emotional stress we seek God with all our hearts and with one goal; for Him to meet us where we’re at and calm the storm that surrounds us. But it seems that these times are few and far between. They are a momentary diversion from the norm. The norm being that in daily life our attention is on the world and its demands. With all our strength and energy we focus on what needs to be done and once again our Creator is on the shelf of life until the next time we are in the place of desperation. But what if our understanding of desperation changed? What if we saw the real purpose behind this word?
To suit my intentions best I’m going to use this meaning of desperate
Definition of desperate (adj)
1. despairing: overwhelmed with urgency and anxiety, to the point of losing hope
2. as last resort: so drastic or reckless as to be suitable only for a last resort
3. showing extreme urgency or intensity especially because of great need or desire
When things are going well, our lack of communication with God is indicative of the self-centered society we live in.
The word desperation has had a negative connotation linked to it because of its meaning. This meaning gives rise to criticism because a lot of us are under the delusion that we are supposed to be a self-sustaining people who have our ducts in a row and who can control our circumstances. If this were true why would God call us sheep? Sheep are the most dependent of all animals. When their wool has grown out, if a sheep were to fall over there is no way for it to get up without the help of the shepherd. The sheep depend on their guardian for food, water, safety and to lead them where they need to go. Doesn’t this sound like us? We pursue God with a skeletal understanding of what it is to pursue Him. We must pursue God in every avenue of our life and know without Him we cannot breathe let alone live righteously. Remember our righteousness is like filthy rags.
We must live in that place of desperation where we acknowledge the fullness of our need for God. Not the desperation that is in trouble or afraid, but the desperation that is passionately seeking God. Our desire for God must spill out into our everyday life where it is normal for us to consistently find ourselves looking upward as if to be searching for that moment’s answers from God Himself.
If God is truly “Lord” of our lives, we must acknowledge Him in our decision making, and bow to His supreme wisdom in all our dealings. This keeps us under the canvas of desperation for God.
This servant doesn’t have the words to speak His heart, all he knows is that he wants God and he wants all of God. Desperation is surrender. It’s when we let go within and leaning on God becomes an automatic response to every moment of everyday.
Challenge: Begin acknowledging God in your life. Talk with Him and call upon His wisdom in the small things as well as the larger things.
Marni
Go on to: Psalm 91:1 Abiding with the Almighty
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The
purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate,
and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy
will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through
Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord
require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your
God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or
crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the
standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for
the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not
Christian.