"I want to want Thee!"

I’ve been thinking a lot about “hungering for God”. About being desperate for Him and thirsting for His presence. I truly long to always thirst for God. I know we must confess, repent, fast, pray and put our selves in a place of obedience where God can move in our hearts. But, where do we “truly” begin. For me, the starting place has always been simply asking God to make my heart hungry. A.W. Tozer prayed an awesome prayer:

“O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longings; I thirst to be made more thirsty still. Show me Thy glory, I pray thee, so that I may know Thee indeed.”

So, we ask and we believe in our hearts He will create a hunger in us. Jesus says in John 16:24, “I tell you the truth, my father will give you whatever you ask in my Name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my Name. Ask and you will receive and your joy will be complete (or made full).”

Shocking Finding!!

We’ve been talking about pursuing intimacy with Jesus and walking with Him moment by moment in my small group at church, exploring what that looks in our daily lives and what it takes to live it out. It’s been an incredible journey. Last week, we looked at some Barna research on the current condition of The Church in the United States. One particular finding caught my attention. The research states:

“Barna expects to see a widening gap between the intensely committed (to Jesus) and those who are casually involved in faith matters. The difference will become strikingly evident between those who make faith the core of their life and those who simply attach a religious component on to an already mature lifestyle.”

This is pretty shocking. I mean, I know what group I want to be found in. Yet, I am so easily pulled toward choosing the flesh – true selfishness. I pray we are continually more and more hungry and desperate for Him - that our hunger for Jesus would drive us to choose Him moment by moment. We’re either passionately walking with Him or we’re not.