Do you have a quiet time? What does it look like? Would you say you worship well? I was never sure if I would be able to answer these questions with confidence. I felt like connecting with God was some mystical experience I would never quite be privy to. And how do I know He really loves me? I know the bible says He does, but how do I know with an unshakable faith that others seem to hold, but not me. Perhaps you are one of the giants of the faith who can spend an hour or more in prayer, still your mind,
and worship well? Even when those distracting thoughts come knocking? May we all be like you one day. 😛
For me though, I have often felt guilty and like I have failed again, for not making enough time to pray or read my bible. And when I did, I struggled to stay focused. I think the trouble was I felt these were “duties” and not necessarily a relationship. “If I do all these things, God might just answer my prayers and supply all my needs. If I served enough, He would somehow fill that continuous need to be seen and accepted as I am and maybe then I would know and feel loved?” My intentions were good, but I could never measure up to my expectations. I have heard about a thousand
times, “No two fingerprints are the same”….. “You are fearfully and wonderfully made”. That’s really great, I know that in my head. But what about my heart?
Then one day, I was reading a book that suggested God made us so uniquely, we each have different “God-prints”, or ways in which we connect with Him. I would forget or maybe I didn’t really understand that God is personal and He reveals Himself to me in ways that is different to everyone else. While quiet times are vital, what if God also reveals Himself to us through our experiences, gifts, talents and passions?
It made sense. This would explain why I can feel my horses hooves pounding the ground in my heart.
Why I can stretch my arms out wide, close my eyes and feel as though I could touch God in the wind. I could never explain why the world stood still and went silent standing beside a horse.
On our round Australia trip, I came to realise there were many things that took my eyes off my pity-partying, anxious, or fearful self. God reveals Himself to me in my heart language. I just have to listen.
There were the awe struck natural wonders you never knew could exist. Sunken gardens, chasms, gorges, waterfalls and deserts. Places where the silence is deafning and you are overwhelmed with the greatness of our God. But God is also in the small. A Blue Fairy Wren fluttering this way and that. A solid roof over our heads in a pandemic. An energetic dog to play with at a remote outback station.
Recognising the things that fill our hearts and praising God for the gift of being seen. These are the gifts that peel our eyes off of ourselves and connect them with the only one who truly matters. He gives us moments to forget ourselves and gaze upwards. What grace when I realise He speaks to me so personally. What does worship look like for you? Is it taming the power of surging waves with a surfboard beneath
you? Is it watching the morning light creep in on the darkness? Where do you feel God is near? Is it moving so freely you can’t help but be filled with joy? Is it listening to or creating music? Making music with words? Is it creating or admiring a garden so beautiful it reminds you of Eden? Is it the rush of reeling in the big one? Maybe it’s watching in awe at the array of sunset colours you never even knew you could mix? Is it holding the hand of your grandchild? Or is it gazing at an eagle soaring and gliding
in all his majesty? Where is it that God reminds you Who He is and you can’t help but be filled with wonder?
In her book “The Sacred Slow”, Alicia Britt Chole says, “Maturity in Christ is not doing more, it is discovering more about Who He is and how He crafted you to know Him and make Him known.” When we are grateful and acknowledge Him, these moments can become worship. How does God make your heart sing to Him? What connects your heart to His? Let us worship Him in these moments.
How wonderful to remember; as much as God fills our hearts with worship for Him, His love for us is infinitely more.
Mel Teunis 