Come Close to Christ

"[The Lord] raised up for his people [the Christ], the praise of... the people close to his heart" (Psalm 148:14).

"People close to his heart." I am close to the Lord's heart! You are close to the Lord's heart!

Remember John at the Last Supper? He reclined on Jesus' chest and later he told the whole world again and again: "I am the disciple Jesus loves!" (John 13:23, 26; 20:2; 21:7; 21:20).

What a blessing it is when I'm meditating on Scripture and the Holy Spirit brings the Word to life in my heart like this! Words I've read many times before suddenly blossom into vibrant, new life. What a surprise! What a joy! It's as if I've never read the words before, though I've read them many times.

Oh, to be captivated by Christ all the time! Oh, to be continually drawn into the glorious realm of his kingdom of the heavens!

Linger with my little prayer poem, "Come Close to Christ." Imagine yourself with Jesus as John was you too will start skipping and rejoicing with John: "I am the disciple Jesus loves!"

Come Close to Christ
Come to Christ
Supper with the Savior
See his smile
Lean on the Lord
Hear his heartbeat
Delight to be his disciple

What a wonderful scene this is! What a prayer! As often as you can remember today try reminding yourself, "I am close to the Lord's heart... I am the disciple Jesus loves..."

Who do you know who needs to "Come Close to Christ"? Offer a prayer for him or her. "_______ is close to the Lord's heart... _______ is the disciple Jesus loves..."

It'd be good to send your friend a word of encouragement right now!

Good Shepherd is Looking for You!

You long to be pursued in love. So do I.

“How are you… really? What do you need? What are you hoping for? How can I pray for you?” When someone expresses genuine personal interest in you it is healing. When you open up to grace it is life-giving.

But somewhere along the line we all have felt rejected… devalued… unknown… lost…

And we have learned to deny our hurts… not have emotional needs… distract ourselves from our inner pain… isolate…

We must come to the point where we cry out to God with the Psalmist: “May my cry come before you, O Lord… May your hand be ready to help me… I long for your salvation… I have strayed like a lost sheep. Seek your servant” (Psalm 119:169, 173-4, 176).

Jesus Christ answers this prayer – the first time you pray it to become a Christian and everyday that you are hurting or lost in some way. He promised us: “I go after my lost sheep until I find it” (Luke 15:4, paraphrase).

The Good Shepherd is always looking for you – to know you and be known by you, to invite you into a more personal and loving relationship. The question for you and for me – right now and every moment of every day – is are we looking to connect with Him?

Pray with me my little prayer inspired by the last verses of Psalm 119:

O Jesus, I have strayed like a lost sheep. May your hand help me…

Cry out to the Good Shepherd! Repeat the prayer of the Psalmist again and again, slowly, until it lives in you and your heart is warmed with the realization: the Spirit of Christ is indeed living in me and He is shepherding my soul in love now and always!

O Jesus, I have strayed like a lost sheep. May your hand help me…

Learning to Abide in Prayer has helped me to connect deeply with Christ’s love and to share it with others. I do it everyday. I invite you to practice with me this delightful way of prayerful meditation on Scripture.

The Bible is full of wonderful promises that God loves us in the way that a shepherd cares for his sheep. As part of a retreat I lead that is based on Psalm 23 I share Bible verses on the theme of “Walking with Good Shepherd.”

Jesus is My Refuge

On Palm Sunday Jesus wept over Jerusalem because the people didn’t recognize him (Luke 19:41). Later in Holy Week Jesus cried out for us all: “O how I have longed to gather you as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings!” (Matthew 23:37, paraphrase).

Do you desire to be that close to Christ? David sought to take refuge under the wings of the Lord, snuggled up to his chest. We can “take heart” from him.

In Psalm 61:1-4 David is in a desert wilderness and he prays: “Hear my cry, O God… From the ends of the earth I call to you… Lead me to the rock that is higher than I… I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings. Selah.”

I can imagine David hiding and praying in a desert cave as the armies of Saul (or his son Absalom) are hunting him down. In his trial he trusted in the Lord as his refuge.

What difficulty are you experiencing? Make the Lord your refuge.

Take a moment to pray “Jesus is My Refuge,” my Breath Prayer inspired by Psalm 61:4. Be still for awhile… Imagine yourself under the wings of Christ who longs for you with tears… See yourself hiding in Christ your cave… Let him embrace you close to his heart…

Breathe in the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ… Breathe out your longing for him…
Linger in the selah of the Psalmist: breathe in Se (say)… and breathe out lah…

Jesus is My Refuge
Lord Jesus Christ… I long to dwell in your tent forever…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your wings…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your tears…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your cave…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your kingdom…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your embrace…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your holy name…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I long to dwell in your tent forever.

Abiding in Prayer is one of the spiritual exercises that helps me the most. I like to meditate on Scripture in this way for a few quiet minutes in the morning. Then as often as I can remember during the day I practice God’s presence as I do whatever I am doing by praying a line like:
“Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your wings…”