"Unseen Actions" Part 2

"Unseen Actions"

Part 2

    On the other hand…

     While many of God's doings in our lives occur in ways and means beyond our awareness, the Christian life nevertheless involves much conscious application to God and His truth.

    "To be spiritually minded is life and peace… Apply thine heart unto instruction, and thine ears to the words of knowledge" (Romans 8:6; Proverbs 23:12).

    The life of faith involves many choices to direct our hearts and minds Godward, in response to His heart and mind directed toward us.  Faith and faithfulness obviously do not just happen.  If this were the case, the New Testament epistles would be very different documents.  Nearly all of them contain challenges to believers, based on weakness and deviation from the Lord and His will.  Though Paul, John, Peter, James, Jude, and the writer of Hebrews, the Holy Spirit called believers to think and believe rightly, necessitating choices to respond and repent.  This required conscious engagement on the part of 1st century believers, and also of Christians throughout the centuries as the Holy Spirit applies the epistles to our hearts and lives.  "Think on these things" commanded Paul, clearly revealing the necessity of our determined awareness and concentration (Philippians 4:8).

    Much of God's behind the scenes, under the surface working in our lives actually happens because of our conscious response to Him.  The prayers of trust and dedication that occur as we walk with the Lord in His Word and with His people result in answers that are "exceeding, abundantly above all we ask or think" (Ephesians 3:20).  Certainly we see some of His working.  But we do not see all, or even most.  Again, however, our times of concentrated focus on the Lord comprise a significant factor regarding our Heavenly Father's seen and unseen actions on our behalf.  Thus, we apply ourselves to "think on these things" and to remain as spiritually awake as possible by the leading and enabling of the Holy Spirit.  Thereby we consciously experience His presence and working by faith, a significant portion of such awareness being that so much more is happening than we begin to know.  

"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!"

(Romans 11:33)

"One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple."

(Psalm 27:4)

Weekly Memory Verse

   For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish."

(Psalm 1:6)