Good morning…
“Discernment is first of all a habit, a way of seeing that eventually permeates our whole life,” explains our post from yesterday, Angels Among Us. “It is the journey from spiritual blindness (not seeing God anywhere or seeing him only where we are expecting to see him) to spiritual sight (finding God everywhere, especially where we least expect it). Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits and best known for developing a set of spiritual exercises intended to hone people’s capacity for this discipline, defined the aim of discernment as “finding God in all things in order that we might love and serve God in all.”
The aim of discernment is seeing God at work in every situation, every person, every single day.
“Thank you for this Devo today,” an email came to me yesterday from a Canadian reader who is currently in Germany. “I think the following quote fits perfectly with what you wrote about this morning. I saw these words in My Utmost for His Highest from today, November 14th.”
“We can all see God in exceptional things, but it requires the growth of spiritual discipline to see God in every detail. Never believe that the so-called random events of life are anything less than God’s appointed order. Be ready to discover His divine designs anywhere and everywhere.”
We can all see God in an amazing sunrise, in the miracle of a newborn, in each breathtaking mountain range. Yet to see God in every detail of every moment, every person, every day we need to steep. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met (Luke 12:31, MSG).
As a verb, the word steep means to remain submerged in a liquid at a temperature under the boiling point for the purposes of softening or extracting the true essence. For us humans, the art of steeping requires remaining submerged with God as our true essence is softened and extracted. The discipline of steeping causes us to become saturated with Christlike qualities, wisdom and character. Our commitment to spiritual steeping requires our time, our whole self and our repeated surrender.
Still.
Steep.
See.
I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength! (Ephesians 1:19, MSG).
Diligently steeping in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions, our inner eyes are trained to see God’s divine designs anywhere and everywhere. How might so-called random events of life, like echoing devotional messages on November 14th, be part of God’s appointed order?
…Sue…
P.S. Just after I pushed “send” on this message, look what I saw. “Rep. Karen Bass Believes Rittenhouse Trial Is Steeped In Racism,” announced the Headline In Time News email which randomly arrived in my inbox.
Steep. I have never read the word steep in the same minute from two completely different sources. Grabbing our attention, what might God be trying to say to us right now as we steep in the Holy Spirit this very moment?
