Follow, Fear, Keep, Listen, Serve, Cling

I have been going through Deuteronomy for a little while now in my devotions, and I re-discovered one of my favorite verses tonight. "You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him (Deut. 13:4)". What a powerful grouping of verbs to sit and reflect on. I want to commit this one to memory and keep chewing it over.

I have been struggling in working out the application of what I am learning right now in small group. Last week we poured over Lewis's teaching, "That is why the real problem of the Christian life come where people do not usually look for it. It comes the very moment you wake up each morning. All your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists simply in shoving them all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in. And so on, all day. Standing back from all your natural fussings and frettings; coming in out of the wind."

Likewise, Brother Lawrence is teaching us how "At other times I beheld him in my heart as my Father and as my God. I worshipped him as often as I could, keeping my mind in his holy presence and recalling it back to God as often as I had found it had wandered from him . . . when we are faithful in keeping ourselves in his holy presence, keeping him always before us, this not only prevents our offending him or doing something displeasing in his sight (at least willfully), but it also brings to us a holy freedom, and if I may say so, a familiarity with God wherein we may ask and receive the graces we are so desperately in need of."

I've been struggling at that first breath of the morning to get myself into the presence of God. I think meditating on this verse will help anchor me there.