God wants to take you to deeper levels and higher dimensions in Him. He wants to commune with you, so He can impart His vision into your spirit. He wants to light your soul aflame and propel you to new heights. Sounds good right? Of course it does... and it's all true. But there's a requirement.
You have to completely make your life over. Perhaps you're thinking, "Not me. I don't need to do that. My life is fine just the way it is." Trust me. We all feel like we have things under control to some degree, which is precisely the problem.
We have to give up control. We have to decrease so that He might increase. God wants to show you a new and better way to live. He wants to shift and refocus your values. He wants to infiltrate every area of your life and reign in your heart every single day.
God no longer wants to be pushed aside and made to wait in line until you've addressed all the cares of this life. He doesn't want to be in second, third, or fourth place anymore. He wants first place in your life. He wants you to be willing to drop anything and anyone in order to follow Him.
"Then Jesus said to His disciples, 'If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it'" (Matthew 16:24, 25 NKJV).
That's some serious commitment. Are you willing to forsake your own desires and adopt His? Are you truly willing to say no to your fleshly desires and embrace a new and better way...God's way?
If not, your allegiance will be to this world and not the Father; you'll forever be saying "yes" with your lips, while your heart is far from Him.
Do you remember in St. John chapter 4 when Jesus ministered to the Samaritan woman at the well? If not, read the story here. Subsequent to that encounter, in verse 31 the disciples were concerned about Jesus because He had not eaten. So, they tried to convince Him to have a bite to eat.
Take a look at what Jesus said in response to His disciples in vv. 32-34:
"But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, my meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work."
Hmmm... how many of us have that kind of dedication to the work of the ministry? How many of us are concerned about more than temporal things like: How much money we can make, how many fine possessions we have, and who we know?
It's high time that we begin to zone in on what really matters and remind ourselves that "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God." (See Deuteronomy 8:3)
Based on what's covered in today's post, ask yourself: "Do I need a life makeover? Have my priorities slipped? Have things gotten a bit out of alignment? Is God truly pleased with His place in my life? Is He first or is He last?"
I know this post might be a bit heavy, but God is calling each of us back to a place of true loyalty and commitment to Him. The Father is seeking those who will stand up for Him, and carry out His work in the earth.
Are you the one?
As you meditate on what you've read today, I pray that the Holy Spirit will begin ministering to you right where you are. I pray that His anointing will fill your home, your office, or wherever you may be reading this. May His presence serve as your personal reminder of His desire to commune with you and have first place in your life once again.
And if you know that He is indeed first in your life, don't ever let anything come in between you and the Father.
As always, thanks for reading, and until next time... may you be empowered to prosper!
Dianna Hobbs
www.eewmagazine.com
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Dianna Hobbs
is Founder and
Editor-in-Chief of EEW Magazine, the #1 online magazine for
African American Christian women. She is also Vice President of Hobbs Ministries, an international ghostwritingand
consulting firm. She is a leading authority in business, ministry, and
Christian writing.
