When the Israelites encountered God at
Mt. Sinai there was some preparation on their part before God would come. “And
the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and
tomorrow. Have them wash their clothes and be ready by the third day, because
on that day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the
people.” (Exodus 19:10-11 NIV84) In another place Moses commanded them … “Prepare
yourselves for the third day. Abstain from sexual relations.” (Exodus 19:15
NIV84) To encounter God, they had to prepare themselves, to get their minds
right. They needed to be as holy and pleasing before God as they could be
without the stains of sin in their way. Let me note here that sexual relations
does not make one dirty, but for this purpose I believe Moses wanted their
heart and thoughts to be on God and God alone in preparation. God created sex
as a binding covenant forming physical act between a husband and a wife. It
wasn’t created just for procreation but to strengthen and bring pleasure to
marriages.
Let me ask you this … how do you
prepare to encounter God? When you sit down to read His word, when you get
ready to spend time in prayer, when you prepare for gathering with other Christians,
when you get ready for worship, how do you prepare? Do you consecrate yourself;
do you clean your heart and mind? Do you center your focus so the business of
life is not cluttering your mind? If we begin to prepare we might just hear God
in a more powerful way!
At West Side we are beginning a new
prayer partner campaign. We are asking people to join with us in praying daily
for West Side. If you would like to join us please click here and subscribe to
receive daily emails containing a short prayer request for West Side. We
appreciate your partnership.
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