Last summer someone told me before I left for Deeper Still that God had whispered in her ear to tell me to "listen to Priscilla." Now, I fully intended on going to Altanta and listening to every word that each speaker had to say. But now I felt like I sort of had a one-on-one with God in that corporate gathering -- a time when He had something very important to say to me specifically.
I knew within the first two minutes that what she had to say was, indeed, a Word from God specifically for me. But when I came home, I realized that it wasn't just for me. It was also specific encouragement for some dear friends of mine who are going through a tough time.
My notes were quite detailed because, afterall, if someone tells you that God said to listen to Priscilla then you don't want to miss a single thing. I wrote it all down in pen and on my heart. I pulled those notes out last night and began to comb over them.
I wanted to share them with you. Maybe you also need to listen to Priscilla.
Her question as she stepped up on the stage was this:
"What have you stopped expecting God to do? Anticipate what you've stopped anticipating God to do."
She told a story of being a young girl -- one of only two african americans on a gymnastics team. On a day that the entire team had been told there would be an exciting invitation to the birthday party of another girl on her team in the lockers when they were finished practicing, she and the other african american girl found none. While they were part of the team, they were not included -- not invited. Priscilla said that in a room of 19,000 people there were certainly people in attendance who, for whatever reason, felt left out, lonely, uninvited. She wanted us to know that God has extended an invitation to each and every one of us. And with that, she began to show us in God's Word an invitation that was extended to the children of Israel and is extended to us today.
Exodus 19:9, 11 was her text and she wanted us to be sure and not miss God's invitation:
The LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe in you forever." Then Moses told the words of the people to the LORD. (Exodus 19:9)
...and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. (Exodus 19:11)
Priscilla challenged us to approach our time with God with a willing and surrended heart that says to Him, "Lord, I want to hear You speak. Lord, I want to see You."
She said that the context for the two verses above was found at the beginning of Exodus 19. The first few verses repeats their location three times: the wilderness. And they weren't there by accident. God had led them into the wilderness. They didn't choose the wilderness route because there was definitely a quicker way. But God led them into the wilderness. (See Exodus 13: 17-18.)
The wilderness is dry and dusty and we think that it is a terrible place. But God has given us examples of how He speaks when we are in the wilderness. The wilderness is worth it.
Job in Job 42:4, David in Psalm 27:13, Hannah in I Samuel 1:10, Paul and Silas and Stephen surely would say the wilderness was worth it. The wilderness has a divine purpose. God speaks whenever He chooses, but He most certainly speaks in the wilderness. Just as He did for the Children of Israel, He gives the divine invitation for you to hear Him for yourself.
How will you see God in the wilderness?
The children of Israel camped in the wilderness in front of Mount Sinai. The Hebrew word for "camp" means to dwell, to rest, usually a temporary location. But digging deeper into the meaning, you find that it is also the protective covering of Yahweh, a place of bowing down, a place of submission. I'll never forget what Priscilla said in that moment:
"We are more safe in the wilderness with God than out of the wilderness without Him."
The children of Israel were invited to pitch their tents, settle and not miss what God wanted to do: He wanted to speak to them and He wanted to show Himself to them in a way that they would otherwise miss.
God calls us to do three things while camped in the wilderness waiting on Him to speak and make Himself known.
1. We are called to remember what He has done on our behalf. We have been delivered. We have been found by God and rescued. Remembering empowers us to believe Him to continue to deliver us. What would happen if we would just stop and remember how He has delivered us.
2. We are called to recognize our spiritual identity. He is the only one who has the right to label us. People can call us anything, but only God has the authority to name you.
...you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites." (Exodus 19:6)
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 2:9)
She shared that during the time of prayer with the speakers and praise team before the event, someone prayed, "God give us a healthy balance of our spiritual identity." Christians today swing one way and then another. Either we are on a spiritual high, sure of our God-given identity and calling or we are down in the dumps, struggling with whether or not we believe Him. Let's find a healthy balance of who He says we are and walk in that label -- none other.
3. We are called to new levels of surrender.
So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the LORD had commanded him to speak. The people all responded together, "We will do everything the LORD has said." So Moses brought their answer back to the LORD. (Exodus 19:7-8)
The context of the entire message had its crescendo in this moment. At the point that the children of Israel surrendered to what God was calling them to do and said "yes" to walking in their spiritual identity, God promised to come in verses 9 and 11.
The LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also believe in you forever." Then Moses told the words of the people to the LORD. (Exodus 19:9)
...and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. (Exodus 19:11)
On the heels of radical and practical obedience and surrender, God promises to come. He comes to speak to us and to show Himself to us.
We are the spiritual seed of Abraham -- we are the modern day spiritual children of Israel. Now, since none of us are left out of this invitation, what we are going to do with it? Will we camp out in the wilderness knowing that He has led us there to speak to us and to show Himself to us? Will we accept His call on our lives to walk as children of the Most High God and realize the divine treasure we have been given? Will we surrender to His authority and say "yes" to everything that He has called us to do in His power?
If we say yes, the wilderness will be worth it.
When we come out of the wilderness we will be able to join with Job and say:
My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. (Job 42:5)
When we come out of the wilderness we will agree with David and proclaim:
I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. (Psalm 27:13)
When we come out of the wilderness, we will shout as Stephen did even has he was dying:
"Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." (Acts 7:56)
Will we accept His invitation to hear Him speak and to see His face?
Blessings,
Dori
