This week, we have been looking at Hearing our Heartbeat. This particular week left me a little confused. On the surface, I thought this would be an easy week of self-evaluation. Pretty cut and dry: “What are you passionate about? Do it.” But as I began my process of “self-evaluation” I came to the realization that it wasn’t nearly as cut and dry as I thought.
What is my emotional heartbeat? (On a side note, as I guy I first had to get passed the word emotional and think of it more as “passion” than “emotional heartbeat”) As I searched my thoughts, I didn’t have one clear passion come to mind. I was filling out my S.H.A.P.E. study guide and I wrote the question, “What if I don’t know?”
What if I don’t know my emotional heartbeat, or my passion? The study later asked the question, “What changes, if any, need to happen in your life in order for you to give God his heart’s desire?” What changes…in me? You mean I need to change to find my own heartbeat?
Then the study asked another question: “Are there any activities you need to eliminate in order to help you hear God speak to your heart?” Ouch. Am I too busy to hear God?
In Luke 10:38-42, we read of a story of two sisters. You can read the whole story in your Bible or online be clicking here, but the synopsis of the story is this: When Jesus entered their home, one sister (Mary) sat listening to what He said while the other sister (Martha) worked hard on preparations that needed to be completed because Jesus had come to visit. Martha asked Jesus to tell Mary to get up off the floor and help! (my paraphrase) Jesus looks at Martha and says,
“Martha, dear Martha, you’re fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it—it’s the main course, and won’t be taken from her.” (The Message)
Martha got so busy she couldn’t listen to the words of Jesus. And she wasn’t busy with just anything, she was serving God and Jesus said Mary had chosen better. One commentator I read said it this way:
Mary was occupied with Jesus; Martha was preoccupied with herself. What we do with Christ is far more important than what we do for Christ
Take a breath…slow down…and try to listen to God. Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” Find a time when you can shut out the outside world, maybe even for just 15 minutes. Maybe you want to open with a simple prayer, “Lord God, grant me peace and quiet in my heart to hear you for the next 15 minutes.” Open your Bible, or simply pray. Ask God to show you the desires of His heart that align with the heartbeat He has given you. Would you even dare to ask God to break your heart so you can see the world through His heart?
-Doug Rogness
Congregational Life Director, West Campus
