Consecration

How much do we desire God? Enough to hunger after him day and night? To search with all our heart until we find just a glimpse of Him?

So often I feel like we as Christians down play desiring God. We are all about spending time with Him, reading the Bible, and praying, but do we really desire God? Do we constantly seek after Him with a passion that goes beyond any feeling or emotion? Do we love Him enough to sacrifice anything simply so we can dwell in His presence?

God has been speaking to me a lot over the past few months about having a hunger for Him. A hunger that will drive me past the times when I don't feel like seeking Him. A hunger that will drive me to do impossible things simply because I desire God and His presence that much.

So how do we get that hunger? How do we desire God with a passion that surpasses our feelings and will? For me, it came down to getting rid of the distractions. I think that everyone secretly has this desire to know God. Because we were created in the image of God and God designed us to be in a relationship with Him.

Consecration.

To set ourselves apart.

I think hunger for God increases when we set aside the distractions and empty pleasures of this world. It comes when we lay everything aside and say “God all I want is You”. The words carry a weight when they are followed by the action. God honors those who lay everything down to follow Him.

This past week God has really been speaking to me about consecration in my life. I think a lot of times its the small ways of consecrating ourselves that make the biggest impact. Its when we say “God, I'm not going to listen to that music, not because it is bad in itself but because it doesn't do anything to draw me closer to you.”

It's sounds crazy.

Over religious and probably a little legalistic.

But think about it, what if we decided to really try and fill ourselves up with only good things. Not “ok” things or “not that bad” of things but strictly what brings: life, joy, peace, love, and ultimately draws us closer to Fathers presence.

What could God do with a people completely free of the ties and hooks of this world and devoted only to Himself. A people who were willing to say no to the pleasures of this life so they can enjoy the crazy pleasure of God's great presence.

It's hard, but there is a strange satisfaction in knowing that we are no longer a slave to something but free to seek God completely.

Just something to think about.