Coming to Our Senses

In preparation for leading a Spiritual Transformation weekend with Proactive Evangelism Ministries in Florida, I listen for God's direction in the story of the Prodigal Son, Luke 15: 11-32.   While this is probably one of the most familiar of the parables, there is a phrase from this passage that draws my attention today from all the rest- "When he came to his senses". 

Dr. Eddie Lawrence, in his book, Breath of God, says ....

Often these light bulb experiences are occasions when God speaks to us.  Such an experience can be called a defining moment, an epiphany, an awakening, or a revelation.  These are times when our minds get an understanding of what our spirit has been yearning to tell us....Life is so much more spiritual than most of us have imagined.  When our eyes open to this possibility and our hearts become willing, God draws us nearer and nearer.  He always moves to the place of willingness wherever He sees it.

God started bringing me to" my senses" several years ago when he placed a yearning in my heart for more in this life..."open the eyes of my heart, Lord" became my prayer. 

The Sacred Romance by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge was one of the books that thrust me into a journey of a deepening relationship with God that has been beyond my wildest imaginations. The back cover of this book describes the journey as...

From childhood on, something or Someone has called us on a journey of the heart.  It is a journey full of intimacy, adventure, and beauty-but like any fairy tale it is also fraught with more than a little danger.  To ignore this whispered call is to become one of the living dead who carry on lives divorced from their most intimate selves, their heart....It is His (God's) invitation to experience His unfathomable love for us.

Because of His love and mercy for me, God has brought me to a place in this life that allows me to slow down and come to know Him through His word and conversation.  It is a way of life that challenges me to become all that God has for me...restoring me to the way He originally created me to be...in His image.  

The passage in Isaiah 61 is one of hope and restoration that calls all of God's people to be delivered from the bondages of this world that we currently live in....

to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and realease from darkness for the prisoners......to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who greive in Zion-to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.

Dear precious and loving Lord, thank you for never giving up on me and bringing me to my senses.  Thank you for leading me to a place where I can hear your sweet Spirit whispering to me that there is more...an abundant and fulfilling life of being all that you created me to be.  Use your Holy Spirit to continue this process of transformation until I see your face and stand in your Presence for eternity.