Do You Know The Real King Of Hearts

Psalm 77:11-12
But then I recall all you have done, O Lord....
I remember your wonderful deeds of long ago. They are constantly in my thoughts. I cannot stop thinking about your mighty works.

Lot of running around yesterday....In the car...out of the car...in the car...out of the car...
Finally made it to the church around noon and settled in for a time of study and prayer.
I love this building when it is quiet. Usually there is a seemingly never ending stream of people coming looking for help and prayer. We try to meet as many needs as we can...but when the people stop coming and I am here by myself, it is a special time for me.

Time to study and just kind of hang out with God. Time to tell Him what's really going on. Like He doesn't already know, but I have an obligation to do so anyway. I think maybe it's more for me than Him. I think in the verbalization of my prayers, I learn some things about myself. Things I need to surrender to His will. Things I need to receive in my life from His hand. I don't think school is ever out when it comes to living relationship with God. I think we will always be in school...always learning more about ourselves and more about Him. I am pretty sure trouble sets in or at least heads our way when we stop growing. We become stale and stagnant. We loose momentum in our walk. We loose focus and began to look around at all the baubles and beads the world has to offer. Suddenly those things seem more appealing than what God has to offer. Rather than feasting on His goodness and presence, we gorge ourselves on the cheap, carnival junk food that the world offers as a substitute for God's table. It may taste good, but it hasn't any spiritual nutritional value what so ever.

I ran across the Randy Stonehill song "King of Hearts" and it reminded me of the goodness of God in my own life years ago. I don't remember who played the song for me the first time, but I remember it filling my ears and my heart with the knowledge that God reached out to me first. It was God who initiated the desire in me to have relationship with Him. Jesus is the ultimate King of Hearts. I was saved in 1961 but the reality of what it meant to be saved did not kick in until 1979. Kind of sad ain't it? 

From 1961 until 1979 Christianity was a kind of game I played. I was good at it. Except for seven years between 1972 and 1979 I was good at playing the game. I thought I was a serious believer. I mean, come on....I read my Bible every day....I prayed somewhat...I gave "some" money for my offering. I didn't kill anyone or plot to overthrow the free world. I had to be a Christian right? Well, I may have gotten my name in the book but I wasn't  doing anything that God expected from me. Pretty much coasting. But something happened when I listened to this song by Randy Stonehill. Something clicked inside. It was like I saw God for the first time, and I saw myself...the real me...for the first time. I was made painfully aware of God's love and my lack of desire to follow Him. Wowzers!!! I prayed that God would grant me another chance to follow. I confessed my lack of love for Him and for using Him like some "Get out of jail free" card. He filled me with this incredible sense of love.

I'd like to say that the years since 1979 have always been easy and upward, but they weren't. I will say this though, God has used everyday to grow me, teach me and show me what He expects of me. As my wife likes to say..."Michael, you have become very teachable." That means that I may mess up, but I learn from the mess up and I don't repeat it again. I am teachable.

I wish I could explain this desire for God....I can't because it isn't something that has come from me. It is something that God has given to me. So I do believe that I will chase Him until I draw my last breath.  Hope maybe something I wrote about today will stir something in you. Thanks for stopping by the Greene Street Letters...

God on you....
mb