Today marks the beginning of Lent. I explained the season of Lent to you last week in this post, and I hope that some of you have considered celebrating the Lenten season as well.
As I said in the previous post, Lent is a time to increase the things of the spirit, and decrease the things of the flesh. To do this, you must be intentional. You must push past your own will to follow His.
This past week, my roommate of 5 years moved to New Jersey to start a new job. It has been a hard week for me adjusting to being in Lynchburg without her. She was one of my very first friends at Liberty and we have been the best of friends since. In order to distract myself from the fact that her side of the room was now empty, I decided to rearrange my room. It has been a long time since I’ve had a room all to myself. When I was rearranging, I thought about the idea of being intentional in my relationship with the Lord. If I desire to grow closer to Him, I have to put forth the effort. Scripture tells us that “you will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all of your heart” (Jer. 29:13). I’m ready to seek Him with all of my heart, are you?
As I realized how much extra space I now had in my room, I decided to set up an intentional space to spend time with the Lord. When I was a student at Liberty, there was a prayer room on campus that was open for students to come and pray and read their Bibles. It was always comfortable, serene, and intentional. I loved it because it was a space dedicated to the Lord, set apart for worship and personal growth. So, I rummaged around the house and stole a few things from the living room to create my own space to spend time with Jesus in my “new” room.
I have a place to sit, a place to put my Bible, Bible study notebook, and journal. I can have soft lighting with the lamp, and I even found a cushion to make getting on my knees before the Lord a little more comfortable.
It is right beside my bookshelf with all my Bible study resources.
It is my own peace retreat. I’ve placed a reminder there on the table of what this season is for and what this space is to be used for.
So, as we begin this journey towards the passion and Easter, how can you be intentional in your walk with the Lord? I was listening to the radio today and one of my favorite professors, Ben Gutierrez was preaching. He said something that made me stop and really think and repent. He said, “You can’t count on past mountaintop experiences to carry you through in your relationship with the Lord.” Do you ever do that? Do you ever count on those times with Jesus when He feels so close, so personal, so alive IN you, to carry you over to the next week or the next month, or the next retreat when you experience that mountaintop again? I don’t want to live mountaintop to mountaintop, but instead everyday experiencing the power of the Glory. I’m being intentional about the daily walk. I must be, for He is the reason that I live and the Savior of my soul. May this Lenten season be one where I refocus on being wholly devoted, drawing closer to Him.
Consider creating your own intentional space to be with Him.
“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” James 4:8
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