Steep in God-reality

In reading part of the gospel of Luke each day, I’m learning a lot about what our lives should be filled with. In Luke 12 it deals with being filled with God and not self:

“Just then God showed up and said, ‘Fool! Tonight you die. And your barnful of goods –  who gets it? That’s what happens when you fill your barn with self and not with God.’”

I asked myself, What would someone see when they opened the doors to my barn? What am I filling my barn with? If it’s God, then my life should look more like God and Jesus. What is there inside me when people look in? Godly faith? Distraught fear? Corrupt self? Probably people would see some of each. Thank God it’s a process and not an all or nothing situation. In Alcoholics Anonymous there’s a saying: “Progress not perfection.” That’s what I’m striving for, progress; maybe it is slow but steady change. I need to work toward being filled with more and more of God. Then what is inside of me will overflow the barn doors and others will also see more and more of God in my life.

Farther into Luke 12, it says, “Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions.” How does someone steep in God-reality? As I thought about this I realized that it’s really pretty basic. We find God showing up in our lives when we are regularly involved with Him in our lives; regular and frequent involvement in our lives. There are several ways for me to do this. Where do I see and recognize God-reality the most? In the Scriptures, so I need to be reading my Bible regularly, dare I say, daily, or multiple times per day. Also, there’s meditation and prayer. If I can keep an attitude of conversation with God my conscious contact with God greatly improves. Listening and talking to God as I go throughout my day is a great way to experience God-reality.

So today, and for the next 24 hours, I’m going to try to remember to pray and listen to God once each hour I’m awake. I set my alarm on my phone for each hour and I will pause and listen and pray. That’s one way to steep myself in God-reality. It’s one way to try to keep putting the things of God in my barn.

[Quoted Scripture from The Message]