... but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:26-29
This verse is what I've been meditating on this week. God has just been impressing on my mind the idea that He does "shake" the things of this earth and not only does He shake them, the things that are not of Him are easily shaken away.
What this means to me:
My prayer this week has been that God would begin to shake me and my life. That He would begin to shake away those idols that I don't even know are there. Verse 29 ends with, "God is a consuming fire". Consuming is such a strong verb which reminds you that nothing can survive being consumed. You can't go through a consuming fire and come out the same on the other side. This week I keep getting that picture in my mind of allowing that consuming fire to shake me from the very core so God can consume and remove forever the idols and sins that are keeping me from Him.
How its looked:
Its a little scary for me to pray this. As I first realized the need for God to shake my own life, I immediately became fearful. Fearful that something bad would happen so that I could learn if I really trusted Him, fearful that life would go chaotic, fearful that all sorts of things would go wrong. But that fear in and of itself was something that needed to be shaken.
My question became "What about the character of God do I not believe in where I would believe that He would harm me or cause me pain without an ultimate good and holy purpose in mind?" My view of God was being challenged. So in the midst of my journey towards being joyful and thankful in all things, God is now also teaching me how to truly trust Him and to be joyful, trusting, and thankful that He can and will "shake" me so that I may come out more like Him on the other side of the "consuming fire".
We'll see what all He reveals to me that needs to be "consumed" this week!
Goals from last week:
- Still memorizing Matthew 5. Its going slow though! My brain isn't retaining as well for some reason. But I'm still plugging away.
- Still reading "Created to Be His Help Meet". Interesting book. Definitely some good things in there that have challenged me, but also some things that I'm not sure are true. We'll see how the book continues to unfold =)
- Continuing that 10-15 min. down time in the middle of the day to refocus me and focus on Christ. That middle of the day additional quiet time has made a world of difference in my attitude towards the kids and life in the afternoon.
- Continue memorizing Matthew 5
- Continue to meditate on Hebrews 12 and how it relates to the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5)
- Continue reading "Created to Be His Help Meet" and start implementing some of her suggestions into our household.
- I would also like to start reading another book...maybe over prayer and mediation?? I'm still looking and thinking. I would like to have one picked over the next week
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