Call and Response

This blog post is by Ashley Bowie, a child really, who loves all the beautiful things; coffee, words, people and birds.

I'm a big fan of Jesus. He's my favorite person. I tell Him all the time how much I love Him, and how grateful I am for what He has done and continues to do for me and on my behalf. Jesus has been my dearest friend. He has laid beside me when I had nothing but tears at the end of the day. He has been the source of my very greatest joys, and the only one I take comfort in when there are no human words for my feelings.

A few days ago I was talking with a friend who is soon to be married. She was talking about pre marital counseling and all of the things she was learning about herself, and how amazing it feels to be chosen in such a special way. She went on to talk about how much more clear it is to her now in this stage of life that Jesus has chosen us, He has decided that we belong to Him, we are His bride. 

Her joy was a beautiful thing to witness, and my heart was overwhelmed. We don't know how desperately we need help until we are helped, we don't know how wonderful love is until we are loved, we don't know the delight in Christ until we recognize that He has chosen us. On the testimony of my friend I could feel the pull on my heart by a God who wanted me to know that I have been chosen. She was simply recounting something she had learned about the wonder of Jesus, and my heart was in full on worship mode toward the king of all kings. 

It reminded me of this moment in scripture;

"In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!" (Isaiah 6:1-3)

These angelic beings were standing/flying in the presence of God. He, the great I am, was right there in the middle of the room. They did not say, "Lord you are holy, the whole earth is full of your glory." They were calling out to one another, declaring to one another the greatness of our God. 

The account goes on to say that Isaiah stands there in the midst of them and becomes convicted of his sin. One of the seraphim takes a coal from the altar to cleanse him and two sentences later he is volunteering to take the message of God to the people of Israel. 

How powerful, the testimony of the beloved of God! We tell Jesus all the time that we love Him, we thank God for His mercy and His plan. But there is something special about declaring these truths to one another. I can tell you a lot of things about Jesus, miracles He did, stories He told, and social rules that He stomped all over. These things are wonderful, and certainly full of truth, but when it comes to the human heart, the experience of Love transcends facts. To witness this Love radiating out from another person is more powerful than any lesson on Jesus. 

One of my greatest joys that comes from having a community of faith is hearing about the greatness of our good Father. As we gather, let us not be shy of telling the great things God has done. He comforts us in sorrow, He lifts us up with joy, He counsels us in times of confusion, and He is the Holy God who holds the universe from beginning to end. As we call out to one another the goodness of God, our hearts respond in worship, repentance, and desire to carry out the will of heaven on earth. 

I've heard it said, that God does not need our worship, rather we desperately need to worship God. Perhaps as we tell one another about the greatness of God there will be those in our midst who hear and are drawn to the Father, whose hearts will swell when they hear the call of one son or daughter to another and long to be a part of that family.