Overwhelmed by God

When was the last time you were overwhelmed by God?  If you can't recall very easily, it's time.

I can surely tell you that Monday night was the last time I was just knocked down by how incredible my God is.

Monday was the final session of a 6-week Bible study I've attended.  We studied The Law of Love by Beth Moore.  It's a short study of the book of Deuteronomy.  I know what you're thinking, and YES I truly fell in love with God through studying Deuteronomy.

This was my first time doing a Beth Moore study.  I've always heard that her studies have insane amounts of homework, but this study just had one article to read each week.  We watched Beth's video together as a group each Monday night and then read the article on our own throughout the week.  After participating in this study, I want to do more Beth Moore Bible studies for sure!  I was drawn in by her passion and dedication to God's Word.

She is the kind of teacher that I want to be for my Sunday school class.  Of course I don't want to be her.  I'd have to lose another 50 lbs. and acquire a cute southern accent.  But who she is in her arena is who I want to be in my little sphere of influence.  I feel the same passion that she expresses.  I don't ever want to be on a stage speaking to the sizes of crowds she addresses.  And, Lord, please hear me say that I don't ever want to be on a video and have people document exactly what this mess you call "hair" looked like.  But, oh, I want to sit with my people in my little room at church and watch God open their eyes to see him and their ears to hear him.

Every Monday night I've come home and told Jared all about our video and lesson for that night.  My mouth could hardly keep up with the words spilling out of me!  This week when I came home and sat with him to discuss my evening, I just kept crying through my retelling of the lesson.

In fact, I had goosebumps, a lump in my throat, or actual tears on my face for the entire video during this last session.  When the video concluded and we sat as a group to discuss the last lesson, I could hardly keep myself seated on that couch!

I'm telling you:  this stuff is GOOD!  My God is GOOD!  Rekindling a passion and thirst for His Word that is greater than I've felt in years is GOOD!

God started speaking to me through this study before it even started.  Each week he placed little lovenotes for me all throughout the video and lesson.  And I'm not even talking about the actual lesson yet.  I'm talking about moments where he practically appeared in the corner of the screen to wink at me and remind me that HE was the one speaking.

For example, during the first video, Beth was going to reference Habakkuk 2:2.  I tensed as soon as she mentioned the book of Habakkuk.  I have a history with Habakkuk.  She then said something like, "This verse isn't part of our study, but I just feel like the Lord wants me to read verse 3 for you as well."  She went on to read Habakkuk 2:3 and to say that was for a specific woman to whom God wanted to speak.

That is the verse with which I have a history.  That verse is the verse God gave me when I desperately longed with all my heart to have a daughter.  He gave me this verse one month before I got pregnant with Nora:

For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false.  Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay.  Habakkuk 2:3

The italicized portion is what God specifically spoke to me.  I still get choked up just typing those words!

That Habakkuk moment on that first night of the Beth Moore study was just the first of oh so many moments where God left his fingerprints to let me know that he was working and speaking.  It was incredible.

I want to tell you everything I learned through this study.  I want to share all of the specific things God said to me.  I want to sit down with you and not be able to catch my breath because I can't talk fast enough to say it all.  In fact, stop by my house and we'll have that conversation.

I guess what I want to type here today is that I want you to experience God in just as fresh a way as I have.  I have been a Christian for over 21 years, and it had all become a little too familiar, too routine.  My world pretty much consists of my home and my church.  Church can become like a job.  I show up on time, do the work I'm supposed to do, interact with the people there, even get frustrated with my "coworkers."  I attend Sunday morning service, teach Sunday school, attend Wednesday night service (currently our Wednesdays have been dedicated to a marriage class at church), and attend at least one Bible study per week in someone's home.  I read lessons I'm going to be teaching and lessons someone has taught me.  I read books for my own devotions.

But I needed a fresh word from God.

And I got it.

And the dull droning through the motions isn't near enough anymore now that I remember what it's like to truly spend time with God.  I pray that I won't ever get back into a rut of doing what I'm supposed to for the sake of being a good Christian.  I pray that my words would be truth and life to the people I influence. And I pray that God would touch you in a way that you know exactly what I'm talking about.

Jessica