2 Chronicles 7:1-3 "Now when Solomon had
made an end of praying, the fire came down from heaven, and consumed the burnt
offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the LORD filled the house.
(2) And the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD,
because the glory of the LORD had filled the LORD'S house. (3) And
when all the children of Israel saw how the fire came down, and the glory of
the LORD upon the house, they bowed themselves with their faces to the ground
upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good;
for his mercy endureth for ever."
My first response to verse one was to think, "What a powerful prayer!" I began, as Paul said, to "covet earnestly the best gifts." I admit that my prayer life is like the picture of the jumbled up letters of the alphabet. I begin to pray and then suddenly my mind is swept in a different direction. Then I find myself praying, "Lord, you know my heart and I ask you to fill me with your grace and mercy and understand my needs. Grant them according to your purpose for my life." Solomon's prayer was very pointed and purpose filled. I know the Lord inspired Solomon to pray that prayer. I can know it, because it is part of the Word of God which is wholly inspired of the Holy Spirit.
After feeling sorry for myself that I cannot pray as Solomon, or as other great men of God, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to remind me. Yes, it was a purpose filled prayer, but the greater focus is not to be on the prayer, but on the ONE Who answered Solomon's prayer and the ONE Who answers my feeble prayers. It was a great prayer, but God is greater than any attempt that is made on our behalf to petition Him with our requests. The focus was no longer on the king who bowed in prayer before his people. The focus now is on the God of heaven who answered the prayer in the most marvelous way. They had prepared their offerings unto the Lord. He consumed them. His glory filled the house once again to the degree that the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD. What a great time. I still am thinking about the previous time when the ark of the covenant was placed and the glory came down. Now, we see the ark of the covenant is in its central location and the hearts of the people are focused upon the Lord and His glory came down to fill the temple.
This paragraph is intended for me, or anyone else who may be wondering: Are our worship services filled with the glory of God? When God's people come together to conduct "worship services", is everything in its proper place? Do we enter the sanctuary with Christ as the central focus of our hearts and minds? Are our prayers centered upon our true need for the Lord, even in order to worship? Are our hearts expecting the presence of the Lord and attentive to that end? Are we presenting our sacrifices unto the Lord? WHAT?? our sacrifices?? Yes! Our sacrifices of broken hearts because of sin in this world, sin in our lives, an easy approach unto the throne of grace, and a lack of commitment in our lives? God has not changed. Have we ever thought about what might happen if, indeed, we all came together with only one purpose: to seek the glory and power of God in our lives. These are things on my heart this morning. May the glory of God sweep across our land, but we must understand that God says it begins with this, "If MY people..."
My first response to verse one was to think, "What a powerful prayer!" I began, as Paul said, to "covet earnestly the best gifts." I admit that my prayer life is like the picture of the jumbled up letters of the alphabet. I begin to pray and then suddenly my mind is swept in a different direction. Then I find myself praying, "Lord, you know my heart and I ask you to fill me with your grace and mercy and understand my needs. Grant them according to your purpose for my life." Solomon's prayer was very pointed and purpose filled. I know the Lord inspired Solomon to pray that prayer. I can know it, because it is part of the Word of God which is wholly inspired of the Holy Spirit.
After feeling sorry for myself that I cannot pray as Solomon, or as other great men of God, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart to remind me. Yes, it was a purpose filled prayer, but the greater focus is not to be on the prayer, but on the ONE Who answered Solomon's prayer and the ONE Who answers my feeble prayers. It was a great prayer, but God is greater than any attempt that is made on our behalf to petition Him with our requests. The focus was no longer on the king who bowed in prayer before his people. The focus now is on the God of heaven who answered the prayer in the most marvelous way. They had prepared their offerings unto the Lord. He consumed them. His glory filled the house once again to the degree that the priests could not enter into the house of the LORD. What a great time. I still am thinking about the previous time when the ark of the covenant was placed and the glory came down. Now, we see the ark of the covenant is in its central location and the hearts of the people are focused upon the Lord and His glory came down to fill the temple.
This paragraph is intended for me, or anyone else who may be wondering: Are our worship services filled with the glory of God? When God's people come together to conduct "worship services", is everything in its proper place? Do we enter the sanctuary with Christ as the central focus of our hearts and minds? Are our prayers centered upon our true need for the Lord, even in order to worship? Are our hearts expecting the presence of the Lord and attentive to that end? Are we presenting our sacrifices unto the Lord? WHAT?? our sacrifices?? Yes! Our sacrifices of broken hearts because of sin in this world, sin in our lives, an easy approach unto the throne of grace, and a lack of commitment in our lives? God has not changed. Have we ever thought about what might happen if, indeed, we all came together with only one purpose: to seek the glory and power of God in our lives. These are things on my heart this morning. May the glory of God sweep across our land, but we must understand that God says it begins with this, "If MY people..."