God’s heartbeat
July 24, 2019
Recently an intercessor who regularly prays through the GHPL has experienced atrial fibrillation (AF). AF is an irregular, often rapid, heartbeat that results when the heart's two upper chambers (atria) beat out of sync with its two lower chambers (ventricles). Sometimes the Lord uses such natural circumstances to draw our attention to a similar spiritual situation in the body of Christ needing prayer.
As I waited on the Lord this morning, I heard, “Listen to My heart,” and thought immediately of Jesus’ response to a lawyer’s question about the “Great Commandment”: “[Y]ou shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Mt 22:37-40).
The Great Commandment is a picture of God’s heart. God is love. Love exists continually and completely among Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Their eternally existing love overflows to us: God loves us continually and completely. The Great Commandment tells us to be like Him! Jesus prayed to the Father that we would be one with the Godhead in love (Jn 17:20-26, esp. 23 & 26). Furthermore, Jesus abides in us by His Spirit: “This is how we know that we live in Him and He in us: He has given us of His Spirit...If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus” (1 Jn 4:13-17).
Can we picture loving God, the first part of the Great Commandment, being the atria (the upper chambers) and loving people, its second part, being the ventricles (the lower chambers)? The psalmist prays, “[G]ive me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your name.” (Ps 86:11). Just as these two parts have to be in sync for us to be healthy, they must be in sync for us to be like Him and prove our love, for Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (Jn 14:15).
Let’s pray first for ourselves…
Lord, I want to be more like You. Forgive me for reserving my love, for failing to love continually and completely as You love (allow the Holy Spirit to remind you of specific instances). Give me Your capacity to “live in love” and give me opportunities to demonstrate my love for You and my neighbors.
Islam is a religious/political ideology and Muslims the people in bondage to it. To love God is to hate Islam the ideology, and to love our neighbors is to love Muslims.
Now let’s pray for the body of Christ…
Lord, so many times, we’ve failed to show love to our enemies, to strangers in our midst, even to our neighbors. Please forgive us. We acknowledge our lack and ask for a fresh baptism of Your love. May Your church become a worthy Bride for you, a Bride who loves continually and completely.
Lord, stir up Your church to love Muslims as You love them, proclaiming the Good News and taking to them Your mission of forgiveness, acceptance, reconciliation, healing, salvation and belonging.