As I was reading yesterday's devotional from My Utmost For His Highest, I noticed a portion of the devotional that I highlighted in orange. Obviously, at the time that I had highlighted what he said, it was very pertinent and something I should learn and really hold onto.

Now when did I buy this devotional? Probably back in '98 or '99 while I was still in college. That was 7 to 8 years ago and that quote I highlighted STILL applies to me today.

I just think it's amazing how old lessons can still be applicable to you at almost any time in your life, though you might be in a completely different stage of it.

It's like, I highlighted it because I wanted to get that portion of it into my head so I would learn from that and hopefully change and make forward progress. But I read that quote and thought to myself, "ya know, this quote is just as applicable to me right now as it was back then."

I can't remember exactly what circumstances I was in when I read that passage, but I can see the part of a person's character that he's pointing at and I still struggle with that same character issue.

Man, I'm slow...

Maybe I shouldn't get too down on yourself 'cause I'm always a work in progress and for every two steps forward, sometimes you take one step back. OR, it's just an area of your life that takes a lot longer to change...I'm grieved because I'd have changed a lot more by now.

Anyways, I'll stop killing you with the suspense. The main quote is in bold, but I included the paragraph from which it came from to give you more context. The devotional is about Jesus' transformational gaze.

This is what Oswald Chambers says:

"Then Jesus looking at him, loved him..." (Mark 10:21). This look of Jesus will require breaking your heart away forever from allegiance to any other person or thing. Has Jesus ever looked in this way at you? This look of Jesus transforms, penetrates, and captivates. Where you are soft and pliable with God is where the Lord has looked at you. If you are hard and vindictive, insistent on having your own way, and always certain that the other person is more likely to be in the wrong than you are, then there are whole areas of your nature that have never been transformed by His gaze.

When I read that statement I just sigh...I thought I'd grown more in this area, and I have, but not as much as I'd thought. If I did, I think that quote would hit me as hard, since it's something I still see in my life; an attitude that is still prevalent in my mind much of the time.

Often I lack the humility to allow Him to gaze upon me and look into His face. I want His hands and His gifts, His blessings. But not often do I seek His face anymore. I'm afraid of the gaze and what His stare will reveal in me...but I know God's heart is good. I need the truth to set me free.

I can write tons more as always, but these are my thoughts for now :) It's late on Friday night and we leave for tour tomorrow morning.


Upcoming Tour

Pray for blue sky nine as we head up to Michigan and then out to Iowa!

We'll be in Michigan this weekend and then we head out to Iowa on Monday morning.

Pray for save travels and awesome times working at the campuses that we'll be playing.

We have one show in Michigan on Saturday night and we have three shows in Iowa on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I'm looking forward to it. Thanks for reading friends!

Goodnight

This entry was posted by Christopher Wu, on Friday, September 29, 2006. You can leave your response.