"I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." (Isaiah 62:5-7)
As believers we find ourselves posted on the wall: assigned a duty, called into service. We were created for a purpose: to glorify God, enjoy Him forever, and serve him night and day. The privilege and honor of being his people is beyond comprehension.
Consider something as simple as prayer. We rarely grasp what an honor it is to come into God’s presence. We struggle to find the time, energy or motivation to pray. But consider the privilege of speaking freely with God. You are in the presence of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. You are speaking to the one who created the heavens and the earth and all that exists. You are bringing before him requests that he already knows about and has the wisdom to answer.
When we sin, he forgives. When we are weak, he is strong. When we run out of words to say, Jesus prays for us. The writer of Hebrews tells us that “he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” (Hebrews 7:25)
Have you ever wondered what Jesus is doing right now? Well . . . . one thing he's doing right now is praying for you!
We rush through our prayers way too quickly. A few words here – a few thoughts there – and we’re done. We dash out the door and head straight for what we consider to be the important business of the day.
But God is the important business of the day.
God is not some kind of assistant - hired to help us fulfill our vision for what we think life should be. He's not someone we approach simply because we've got a problem. He’s not just a consultant. He's God! And we dishonor him when we rush through our time of prayer and quickly run off to chase the most pressing needs of the day.
Don’t be in a hurry to leave the presence of God.
Stay put. Listen.
If we understood the infinite worth of everything that lies before us we would move every mountain, empty every sea, and make every effort to lay hold of Christ. He is of such infinite worth, value and glory. To have him is to have everything. And as we experience his goodness, mercy and grace more and more, we will long to spend even more time with him.
We must give ourselves no rest in seeking to know him better. We must do everything possible, day and night, to become all that Jesus wants us to become. Like the four creatures in Revelation 4 we must bask in God’s presence and “day and night” praise his holy name. “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” (Revelation 4:8)
Give God no rest in your seeking, asking, yearning, calling and pleading. Pray big and ask Jesus to pray big – for you!
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