Today's True Identity Devotion was on the topic of Zeal. (Find it at http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Brookings/True-Identity-Ministries/111926659730?ref=nf) God has been really working on my heart all this week about enthusiasm and zeal. Something that I heard said this morning really struck me. It was "I never want my zeal for God in public be greater than my zeal for God in private". WOW! What a great statement. So many times we can really go after God and be Zealous when we are doing it in public. In a church setting, in a bible study, hanging out with friends. But what happens in those times that it's just you and Jesus? How zealous are you then? That word zeal means: Enthusiastic devotion to a cause, ideal, or goal and tireless diligence in its furtherance, synonym: passion. This really challenges me to look at my private life with Jesus. Am I excited about spending time with him? Am I devoted to spending time with him? Am I tireless and diligent in MAKING time for him? The answer is...sometimes...and sometimes not.
A few comments have had me thinking about this. This week more than once I have had people come and tell me their prayer requests and then say "I know you will be praying hard and spending time with Jesus so I wanted you to know". Why would they say that? It's because they have seen that my public life for Jesus is very zealous....so they assume that my private life is too. Oh please Lord let that always be so. Please God never let me portray something in public that I don't sustain in private! Maybe you can join me this week in asking God to fill us each full of zeal and enthusiasm for serving him. Both in public and in private!
Amen!!! :)
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