Hello Friends,
This is a creative devotional I did for the Take Me Deeper group at His Kingdom Come.
Today's devotional did not come easily for me. I have been mulling it over, doing art, choosing the music video, studying different verses and versions, for a couple of weeks and even now I don't know how I am going to pull it all together. (This took nearly another week)
The Take Me Deeper theme for 2016 is about discovering our identity in Christ and I found a lot in this study about that, especially after meditating on the key verse in the Amplified version of the bible.
"So then, brethren, consecrated and set apart for God, who share in the heavenly calling, thoughtfully and attentively, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest whom we confessed as ours when we embraced the Christian faith." - Hebrews 3:1 (AMP)
First of all, we are family. Don't be put off by the word "brethren"; it's just an old-fashioned way of saying "brothers and sisters". Next we learn that we are set apart for God. That's what holy means. Then we find out that we (brethren) share in a heavenly calling. And what is that heavenly calling, at its highest pinnacle?
To fix our eyes on Jesus.
King David expressed it this way: "One thing I ask; this one thing I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." (Psalm 27:4)
Once I had a dream that I was taken up to heaven. I was given two guides, who immediately began showing me wonders and marvels in the heavenly realm. But I had a sense that this was a short visit so I said, "I want to see Jesus." They tried to put me off, but I insisted, "I want to see Jesus." When I wouldn't stop asking, they brought me someone I recognized as an actor who had played the part of Jesus in a movie. I told them that was just an actor and I wanted to see Jesus, the real Jesus. I demanded, over and over, until I woke myself up shouting, "I want to see Jesus!"
Heaven held no delight for me unless I could see the One my soul loved.
The theme of this month's TMD is "I am a Heavenly Citizen". That is a wonderful thing to contemplate, but even more wonderful is that I get to have what King David longed for; I get to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. And I get to do that each time I enter into my prayer closet.
Like the wardrobe in C.S. Lewis's "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", my little prayer closet grants me access into the heavenly realm, where Jesus resides and where my name is written on the registry of official citizens.
There God is writing my story. He already has plans (Ephesians 2:10) for the works I will do and a photo album of cherished memories of my past, present and future. Not only is my name written in the registry, it is complete with current, up to-the-moment photographs so there will be no mistaking who (and whose) I am. I am God's house (Hebrews 3:6), built by the Father, cared for by the Son and lived in by Holy Spirit.
I am a citizen of heaven.
You can follow Teresa on her blog, "Tickell Expressions: A Closer Walk"
Author's Artwork:
Going Deeper:
Hebrews 2:1-4
Hebrews 3:1-6
Psalm 27
Ephesians 2:10
This is a creative devotional I did for the Take Me Deeper group at His Kingdom Come.
July 15, 2016
"Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess." Hebrews 3:1 (NIV)
Artist: For King & Country Song: Fix My Eyes
Fix My Eyes
by Teresa ArsenaultToday's devotional did not come easily for me. I have been mulling it over, doing art, choosing the music video, studying different verses and versions, for a couple of weeks and even now I don't know how I am going to pull it all together. (This took nearly another week)
The Take Me Deeper theme for 2016 is about discovering our identity in Christ and I found a lot in this study about that, especially after meditating on the key verse in the Amplified version of the bible.
"So then, brethren, consecrated and set apart for God, who share in the heavenly calling, thoughtfully and attentively, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest whom we confessed as ours when we embraced the Christian faith." - Hebrews 3:1 (AMP)
First of all, we are family. Don't be put off by the word "brethren"; it's just an old-fashioned way of saying "brothers and sisters". Next we learn that we are set apart for God. That's what holy means. Then we find out that we (brethren) share in a heavenly calling. And what is that heavenly calling, at its highest pinnacle?
To fix our eyes on Jesus.
King David expressed it this way: "One thing I ask; this one thing I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." (Psalm 27:4)
Once I had a dream that I was taken up to heaven. I was given two guides, who immediately began showing me wonders and marvels in the heavenly realm. But I had a sense that this was a short visit so I said, "I want to see Jesus." They tried to put me off, but I insisted, "I want to see Jesus." When I wouldn't stop asking, they brought me someone I recognized as an actor who had played the part of Jesus in a movie. I told them that was just an actor and I wanted to see Jesus, the real Jesus. I demanded, over and over, until I woke myself up shouting, "I want to see Jesus!"
Heaven held no delight for me unless I could see the One my soul loved.
The theme of this month's TMD is "I am a Heavenly Citizen". That is a wonderful thing to contemplate, but even more wonderful is that I get to have what King David longed for; I get to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. And I get to do that each time I enter into my prayer closet.
Like the wardrobe in C.S. Lewis's "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", my little prayer closet grants me access into the heavenly realm, where Jesus resides and where my name is written on the registry of official citizens.
There God is writing my story. He already has plans (Ephesians 2:10) for the works I will do and a photo album of cherished memories of my past, present and future. Not only is my name written in the registry, it is complete with current, up to-the-moment photographs so there will be no mistaking who (and whose) I am. I am God's house (Hebrews 3:6), built by the Father, cared for by the Son and lived in by Holy Spirit.
I am a citizen of heaven.
You can follow Teresa on her blog, "Tickell Expressions: A Closer Walk"
Author's Artwork:
Hebrews 2:1-4
Hebrews 3:1-6
Psalm 27
Ephesians 2:10
1 comment:
Such a meaningful devotion Teresa! Really makes me think....
I absolutely love your artwork for this! So beautiful!
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