God sees everything differently than man does. how encouraging is that? not that we're all completely far gone and incapable of seeing things from His perspective, but the things we get caught up by and so often consume us, causing us pain and strife ... they're not even what He is looking at!
1 Samuel 16:7 "But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."
1 Corinthians 4:5 "Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God."
i'm afraid i spent a lot of years wasting time on trying to figure out what God wants by looking at what other people do. comparing my spiritual walk to theirs and modeling things off of people instead of just getting at God's heart. the times i just pursue, obey and enjoy God ... when i am just myself with Him ... are the absolute sweetest. but the times i have felt most discouraged and confused are when i take my focus off the Lord and look at everything around me. then i become overwhelmed by circumstances, disappointed with who i am in comparison to who others are, or jealous of what other people seem to so easily achieve.
i love knowing that God sees my heart. i love that in the midst of criticism or feeling like i somehow need to prove myself - i don't have to! there is no pressure because God sees the movements of our hearts and that is what He'll judge us by. this also reminds me of the importance of guarding my heart too. because letting junk into our heart and keeping it there does more damage than the stuff that shows up on the outside. the outside sin or struggle is always a result of what's going on inside.
there are things inside of you that you're afraid to tell other people. there are honest cries of your heart that you feel like a mess or a failure and wonder how that will ever shift. there are dreams inside of you that you don't think are possible ... or brush aside because they seem selfish or silly ... but God sees all of that. He sees every intent in your heart, every struggle and every question, and every sincere desire to follow Him. i believe that He sees the ways you have been judged by others and how that has affected you deeply, and He wants you to know that He doesn't judge like that! He doesn't see you the way that people do, or the way you perceive other people to see you! in fact, He sees you in a much better way than you even see yourself and He loves you way more than you imagine.
i should've written that last paragraph in the first person, but i'm too lazy to go back and change it, or maybe too embarrassed? but i hope that somebody out there in internet land will read this and connect with some part of what i wrote and realize the depth of God's love for them and the reality of His ability to bring your dreams to the surface. no matter what! (and not only to the surface but into fruition!) along with the wonder of living face to face with God and resting in knowing that He knows and loves your heart!
mike bickle teaches on david's revelation of the heart of God, and david truly had a life-changing perspective here, because he recognized this reality that God does not see things the way that man does. david was neglected by his own family, but it didn't matter because God chose him. knowing that God saw him differently caused david to see everything differently - his heart, life and the people around him ... all for the better. God never cut david off when he messed up (big time - hello adultery and murder! but hey, there i go judging by man's standards) because He saw his sincere heart. david was called a man after God's own heart. i've always been fascinated by that - what greater compliment could someone be given?! even in failure, God sees the movement of the heart and still sees SUCCESS. crying out to God was always the beginning of victory for david and it can be for all of us too - easy enough, right?
No comments:
Post a Comment