Directions Of The Heart

NOTE: Due to illness and other assorted maladies, I have been unable to write this devotional until now. Lord willing, we are now back on track to keep up the daily devotionals. Pastor Rod


"Finally, brethren, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may run swiftly and be glorified, just as it is with you, 2 and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith. 3 But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one. 4 And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you. 5 Now may the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the patience of Christ."
2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

Let me ask you something. For whom are you praying? I mean really praying. Not just saying that you will pray, not just thinking about praying. But for whom are you actually speaking their name before God? I look at the apostle Paul as one of the key role models for any believer, Jesus being the first, of course. And if HE needs prayer, and asks for it here, so do the rest of us. But that is not necessarily the focus here. The focus is for what he asks others to pray. He asks that prayer be made on behalf of the Word of God, that it may go out, and have free course in individual hearts. Paul is always thinking for the kingdom, and the furtherance of the kingdom. I wonder if I am. But again, I think it goes back to the prayer, not for what it does FOR us, but what it does IN us. It gets our hearts in line with God's, not the other way around.

There are two kinds of obstacles to the Word; two kinds of people: the unreasonable (absurd), and the wicked. And oddly enough, these can both be found in the church. Not everybody who attends our fellowships believe the way we believe, nor embrace what we believe to be true. This is a hindrance to the gospel of Christ, and Paul is asking for prayer to be delivered from this, so the Word of God goes out unhindered. The antichrist is coming, but the Lord is faithful.

And finally, Paul has the confidence in the Lord, that we do the things we read and understand, the Word that God is putting in and on our hearts, that we do those things, and then, beloved, that we will do those things, that we will continue to do those things as we read His Word, and pray, and allow Him to speak to us today. And beloved, I too, have this very confidence in the Lord, that you too, do and will do these things. The word "command" there is a military term, for an order from a superior officer. We may or may not be in the military here on earth, but we are in the Lord's Army. And this command comes from the top! That we read, hear, and obey the Word of the Lord in our life. This will keep us close to God, and our feet walking on the narrow road.

Lastly, it is the Lord who will direct your hearts. Not only will He direct them, but in so doing, He will remove the obstacles. Once we were outside of the love of God, and here the Word tells us that the Lord will direct our hearts into it. We may not fully understand it, but the Lord will bring us into it. He will help us to realize it in our lives. He will direct our hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ. I don't know about you, but I want patience in my life. I'm just afraid to pray for it, because someone once said that patience is developed in adversity, and I am not sure I can handle any more in my life presently. That being said, it is the Lord who directs our hearts into the patience of Christ. He teaches us to wait on Him. He teaches us to trust in Him. Beloved, allow the Lord to direct your hearts into the love of God, and the patience of Christ. Don't be afraid. He is all good, all the time. Amen.