Article:” Lord breathe into my life -A call for a broken heart for Gods touch ” | Jobin Sam Varghese

“The world has yet to see what God can do with a man fully consecrated to him. By God’s help, I aim to be that man.” – DL  Moody.

The greatest fall of the church/ people today is lack of brokenness and desperation. Off late while I was visiting/ministering in one of our youth/campus group meeting– I spoke to a few of the leader “The larger worry for God isn’t that the fellowship isn’t growing/ people not being filled by the spirit  …etc.. but it’s that in the first place we are not even thoughtful/ burden seeing the dead/still situation – we are happy/fine being in a maintenance stage ”.

To letter to the church of Laodicea- God mentions your hot nor cold- and continues to mention to the church “You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked”. This been the unfortunate stage of many believers- being self – righteous –they are part of church fellowship – have prayer as there check list but are dead in their walk with God / don’t exercises a living relationship with God- there “spiritual life” is more of ritual/ check list – like that of the Pharisees.

In Ezekiel 10 – We read the glory of the Lord departed the temple but the service kept continuing in the temple – This season many church passes through is alarming – as people loose importance on yielding to voice of holy spirit and plan things their own way ! Many believers- resounds those words in Malachi – “It’s too hard to serve the LORD..” and finding righteous in their own ways !

The life God has called us into is not about just somehow pushing it through/mediocrity but about experiencing his glory in our life !

A person / church who comes with brokenness/desperation will experience “ being soaked” in God’s presence!

I would want to mention in detail on what Does it mean to be Broken and what does it mean to be Soaked in spirit?

1)      Firstly what does it mean to Broken?

Being Broken for Self –

The first important part in our life is to have brokenness and desperation for our own spiritual life.  Psalms 51.17 – “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise”. For God presence to be felt in our life’s- the first thing required is a broken and a contrite heart. Jesus tells in Mathew 5, Blessed are those who are poor in heart… those mourn in the heart – what does it mean to be poor – there is a sense of desperation, for that one meal – for that one penny.. When we sit to pray, read from the read, attend a Church service- are we there with a prejudice thought – oh I have read this passage earlier – I have heard sermon earlier – what’s there more for me surrender?

I love the way David describes the desperation in Psalms 47 “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God”.

Isaiah 29.13 – The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught”. God looks for true worshipers – who would worship him in truth and spirit, where the praise would rise from the depth of the heart and that which is not formed based on any human understanding. In the book of Joel chapter 2 – we read render not your garments – but your heart itself. As mentioned in the above words – you might be praying, singing along in the church service but then you don’t experience the presence of the Lord – that’s a dangerous state!

Jeremiah 3. 3-4- “ ..Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your heart..”. Lets come to the Lord –with a heart that thirst for the Lord and with the sanctification he expects- for his presence to come over in our life !

Being Broken for the mission on our life –

We again live in generation where people are fine seeing the mission/Gods plans over there life’s going in vain and their personal / career/ educational goals being attained. The tragedy of life is not being unemployed – falling in an exam paper – the greatest tragedy a person could be in – is Gods plan over there life going vain. When Nehemiah heard the walls of Jerusalem being broken and burned- he wept/ his heart was broken-In our churches today – when we see people backsliding – when we in our churches people standing with stubbornness – when our young people lost in the world and not being filled by the spirit – when we many of the gifts of the holy spirit gone over from churches – Does our heartache ?

John Knox who played a strong role in the revival of Scotland went around praying with deep agony “Give me Scotland or I die”. Even when we ask God for revival to break – out in our churches/ country -God is looking out for people who are going to desperately wait and intercede for the church and city.

In book of Haggai – we see when God returned the Israelites from exile to rebuild the temple of God- they started to build up their own houses – for which the Lord send them this word “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin? ”Could we pray like Habakkuk Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known.  May we pray Oh Lord our God – May see we see your hand moving in our church – help us as a church to rely on the move of the holy spirit and me see your glory come on us! As Isaiah returned to the call of God he said: “Here am I. Send me!” – even today there is that same voice echoing Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” !.When Solomon dedicated the temple of the Lord – we read on how the glory of the Lord move through the entire congregation- we will see a great glory of God moving in our churches when we come these days to the presence of the lord with brokenness and desperation for his touch over life and

2)      What Does it Mean to be Soaked in his presence?

What does it mean to be SOAKED –  Paul in his epistle to Ephesian’s mentions “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit”. It refers a spiritual stage- where we start to be lead by the spirit- where you start seeing vision God has towards your life- where you start experiencing a river of HIS love flowing through – on the more having a deeper quest to know more /experience God in a greater form on each and having a greater burden upon the mission entrusted upon you.

Here are a few pointers I believe would happen when a person has this experience!

1. A)Transformation in the mind

Romans 8 – talk greatly about this – the author mention- the mind that is controlled by the flesh will desire what the flesh wants and the mind that is controlled by the spirit will desire what the spirit desires – our natural mind by itself is carnal to the plan of God. As Jesus told in John 15 –unless we abide in him like the branches abide in the vine – it won’t be possible for us to bear fruits. You would start experience Godly desire to do in your daily life – that won’t be a burden and you would start feeling a greater joying in doing the same. Isaiah when he saw the Gods glory – he cried – he is a sinful man- something similar peter called out – once he got the boat full of fish – he told to Jesus move away- since he was a sinful man. When we see God in his glory all our self- righteous points fall apart!

When God commissioned Isaiah – we read this experience – “Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”  You would experience a freedom in your life – Gods divine touch over your life!

 

 

 

1. B)The strength, the right prayers his will over our life

Romans 8:26-27 – “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”.

A person whose mind is been controlled by the spirit of God – will experience the grace to sustain himself through the toughest season – like its mentioned in Isaiah- the plant that bears fruits in all the season as its routes are well connected to the stream. The next important thing the author mentions here is that “We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans”. A lot of the prayer – don’t cross the roof ceiling – Jesus looked into Pharisees and told them their great word and a long time of public prayer – doesn’t mean that their prayer is heard by God. A person who is filled by the spirit would intercede for matter which God wants him to pray about and that which is in accordance to the will of God.

 

1. C)The right and authoritative words to speak

In Proverb its written-“ The right word at the right time is like precious golset in silver”. Even while you minister with other – you don’t need to worry on what words you need to speak – Jesus tell “..for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you (Mathew 10.20). It would not be just the words you would speak – but the authority of the spirit would be on that – which would pierce into the heart of the listeners- just as when peter spoke – the word pierced in the heart of the listener and they repented.  We read this experience over Jeremiah life” .. the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth..”. You will see the word and Gods authority to move through your life.

 

1. D)Knowing the direction to go in their life –

At time life be like that of a spacecraft/airplane which has lost is gps/navigation system – which keeps flying without a destiny –  there is no understanding of the purpose over life/ will of God over the life. Just to quote a few of those incidences – We read Jesus being filled by the spirit was lead to in the wilderness, Philip was lead to go to the Ethiopian minister, Paul talking about the leading he had each of the mission trips… the book of Acts just speaks about how when each  God power moved among the believer/ church when they were tuned with the voice of the holy spirit. Even the life Israelites is a good example in this line – they shifted their camp only when they saw the cloud moving ahead of them. I love the pray for Moses “ Lord if your presence does not go ahead of us – don’t send us ”. May we tune to the voice of the lord over our lives.

I would like to conclude by quoting Romans 12. 2 “ Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

 

 

Conclusion Note

In Jeremiah 4.19 we read  “Oh, my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. Oh, the agony of my heart! My heart pounds within me, I cannot keep silent.For I have heard the sound of the trumpet; I have heard the battle cry.”  Let these be days we have a greater anguish and thirst for the Lord concerning our life and the ministry God has placed our life – Lets not stay there in the outer courts- but thirst Lord I want to come to in the inner most sanctuary – Lord not just to stay at Bethel- Gilgal- but to cross Jordan and have a double portion -Lord lead me to deeper intimacy with you!

 

May we pray – Lord I come with a broken and desperate heart – it’s for you alone who I long for – Lord come in my life – breath your air into my life- I wanted to be soaked in your presence- earthly things can’t satisfy the quench in my heart – Come oh holy spirit – stir deep within the heart. In Jesus name.. Amen!