Thirty-Seven

On February 26, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Mark 15: 46

Joseph bought a linen cloth, took Him down, wrapped Him in the linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb which had been cut out in the rock; and he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.

In the attitude of seeking the Lord and reaffirming my devotion to Him, I have been thinking of Easter differently. As we near the Easter celebration I am pondering my life on this side of the grave but with a view from the other side. Here is what I mean by that.

Imagine yourself standing before the tomb in which Jesus would later be laid. Perhaps you are one of his disciples and you know what is about to occur. See yourself standing there, looking at Jesus’ burial chamber knowing his dead body will soon lie there. What emotions rise up in you? What does devotion and seeking him mean from that side of the grave when you have the knowledge of what will occur? In other words, what would the idea of devotion and dedication mean to you if I could, right this moment, transport you to the tomb which received Jesus while at the same time translate you to mere days before his crucifixion? If I could send you back with all your present knowledge, to stand before Jesus’ grave, what would that feel like?

I am asking myself if my devotion to him would be changed in an instant. Would I burst into tears knowing about the cross or would I shout praises thinking of his resurrection? Perhaps I would run through the town desperately seeking him. I sorta think my reaction would be the latter. I think I would be frantic to find him. Now here is the question I am asking myself as I face the cross, “Why am I not seeking him as desperately right now?” Easter is 37 days away, by my reckoning. The cross and the tomb loom before me. The truth of his resurrection burns in my bones. I am faced with his coming torture, death, burial and eventual victorious resurrection. It is fresh and new, not 2000 years old. I am facing that reality now. Why don’t I shout, sing, cry, pray or praise? Why am I not moved to great acts of seeking him?

This is one devotional where I will ask you not to imitate me. Be more devout in your search for his heart. Chase him down in the streets and demand his attention. Go with him, following every step he takes. Listen to every word he speaks and cherish each one as a precious pearl.

Thirty-seven days. On this side of history, we know what the next thirty-seven days would mean in the life of Christ. I guess the question is, what do those thirty-seven days mean to our lives?

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Focal Point

On February 24, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Exodus 32: 29

Then Moses said, “Dedicate yourselves today.”

As you know, I believe God’s message to us for this year is for us to draw nearer to Him, to seek Him with new gusto. I was thinking on Saturday that this is a call to rededication. Sunday I received an email from YouVersion with a prayer to “refocus” our attention on our relationship with the Lord. These are all the same message. It is a call to devote ourselves more whole-heartedly to our relationship with God.

Rededication or seeking the Lord with a fresh passion need not be a trial or a duty. God calls us to Him because He wants to hold us close and care for us. He wishes to get more of Himself to us and to give wisdom and guidance. All that we desire is in the Lord. Those things flow to us through our bond with Yahweh.

We are living in times when we need a closer connection with Him. Our protection is in the security of His presence. We need to hear His voice so we can avoid danger. It is His voice which we follow to the promise land. Without the Father’s leading we easily stumble and lose our way.

In conclusion, I still believe this is the message He would have us hear, still the missive for 2021. Moreover, the reason Father wants us to seek Him with a new zeal and dedicated passion is because He knows we need a closer walk with Him this year in order to protect ourselves and our families and to walk in His blessing. He is not a selfish God. He is a giving Lord. If He has called us to seek Him, then He has a good reason, and that reason is for our benefit. Rededicate yourself to Him, refocus your attention on Him, seek His face. Regardless of the phrasing, the ideas are all the same. Use your energy and determination to draw closer to your Father this year.

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2021 Message

On January 26, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Deuteronomy 4:29

But from there you will seek the LORD your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.

There is no doubt that God is calling to His people. Whether or not this is the last of the end times, we don’t know, but we are certainly seeing signs which Jesus gave us as indicators of the last days. God is calling. He is calling you.

In November of 2020 I heard God saying, “Raise an army.” At first, I thought He might go on to instruct me to build the prayer team bigger. I thought He might be speaking of an army of intercessors or simply a prayer army. I thought He might encourage us to prayer again this year. No. As soon as I thought those things, the answer came through as, “No.” Prayer is an important part of any Christian’s life and this year, as last, we are fools if we are not praying continually (1 Thessalonians 5: 17). God is communicating something different this year. He is calling us to a different place in Him.

I believe with all my heart that what God is telling me to tell others is that He is calling His people to Him. He is asking us to step into a more devoted and immersive relationship with Him. The image I see is of dedication. I see us dedicating more time to seeking the Father and getting to know Him. I believe He is calling every single one of us to draw closer to Him.  The word I cannot escape is, “devoted.”

Let’s be honest with one another without judgment. You know that most of us are not as committed to our relationship with Yahweh as we might be. We used to go to church on Sunday and maybe participate in a Bible Study too. Those were the bigger parts of our connection with God. Christianity is no longer about Sunday church. Covid changed that. Instead of church services, Father is calling us to His bosom. He wants our breath and His interconnected. He wants to live in the midst of us. We need a transformation in our church, but it begins in our own hearts. Leadership come from below which means, it comes from you and me.

What does this look like? In the following days, I will endeavor to show you some of the ways you can deepen your relationship with the Father. To begin this journey, I ask you to seek the Father’s opinion about this message. I believe the 2021 message He wishes me to convey is that He is calling us to a deeper, more personal relationship with Him and that this is begun by seeking Him. Ask Him if I have it right. Is this the call that He has issued? Is this the message He wants you to hear for 2021?

You can use this link to post a question, https://iveyministries.org/ask-ivey/ or contact me directly at irorie@iveyministries.org.

 

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Word Seek

On January 18, 2021   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 132: 7

Let’s go into His dwelling place; let’s worship at His footstool.

I told you that I have been listening to the Lord speak to me about year 2021. I do not seek the Lord each year about what He has to say about the year. However, sometimes He speaks to me specifically about the year ahead. Last January He said to devote the year to prayer and to seek out Christians who would dedicate themselves to prayer. When I reached out to you with that message, I had no idea how prophetic the message was. Now we see. I suppose, ultimately, that is a message of faith. We are to take God’s messages at face value and obey. He does not intend to begin a game of 20 questions, nor do I find He plays that game well. So, we just listen and obey. The truth will be revealed.

In November of 2020, I began hearing the Father say, “Raise an army.” My immediate thought was that it was to be an army of prayer warriors. Before I could finish the thought, though, I heard Him distinctly negate that idea. Now, truth be told, any devoted Christian is a person of prayer. What then, is the difference, Father, in this call from last year’s? I have been listening and seeing nuances but have not been able to wrap English around it. In the devotional, Science Made Faith (1/12/21), I wrote that I believe part of the call of this year is seeking the Lord in the Word. Last year was about petitioning Him, about enlisting His help in what would turn out to be a catastrophic event. This year I believe He is calling us into devoting ourselves, and our time, to our relationship with Him.

This may be a stronger call from the Lord than last year. I don’t have the fullness of His message yet, but I know He want us to go to His dwelling place and worship as devoted believers. It’s not because He is an ego maniac and needs millions of adoring vassals. It is because something is released in the Spiritual Realm when we engage in heart felt worship. We may not know the fullness of this dynamic until we get to heaven but what we do know is that obedience is sufficient for us. It is enough that God is telling us something to do. We are not His equals that we get to question Him. And, at some level, both faith and love require us to unquestioningly obey.

I know some people have trouble with the word “obey” but here is what I would say to those people. There is freedom and liberty in obeying the Lord. He only calls us to do that which is good and healthy for us. It is the other guy who tries to imprison us. Therefore, I believe obedience to our Father always serves our self-interest. Let us worship. Let us seek the Lord. In seeking, we always find. And like the Easter eggs at an Easter egg hunt, there is a prize inside.

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