Lord, I Am Coming

February 19, 2016

Lord, I Am Coming

“My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”

And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming”

Psalm 27:8

The Apostle Paul was single-minded in his purpose. He told the Athenians, “In Christ we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28 NRSV), and he summarized his ministry in Corinth as, “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). His single-minded devotion to Christ sustained him through very difficult times.

The psalmist David expresses a similar single-minded devotion to God in Psalm 27. His prose, as in verse 4, expresses his heart’s one desire: “The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”

Psalm 27 provides us with an excellent pattern to incorporate our devotion to Christ into our prayers. As you read the psalm, notice how in the first six verses the psalmist speaks about God and in verse seven he begins speaking directly to God. In the first portion of the psalm, David rehearses his personal convictions, his personal core values. Having thus grounded himself with a firm foundation for his faith, he then makes his petitions to God. How can we follow this pattern in our own prayer life?

The great affirmations of faith of the Christian church have been mostly lost in the Twenty-First Century, and that is a shame. I know they seem diminished when used repeatedly, by rote, every Sunday in worship. However, I believe if you intentionally used them at home you will experience their power. Just take your time and slowly read aloud the affirmation, and linger a bit as you consider how the statements form the core of Christian beliefs. There are many affirmations of faith, not just the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds – look for them, and use them to your benefit.

When you finish contemplating the core values of our faith, remember how David expressed his turning from talking about God, to talking directly to God: “My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.” And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.” Now open your heart to the Holy Spirit to shape your petitions to your Abba Father.

Be Blessed!

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.