The Only Judgement

From Come Away My Beloved by Francis J. Roberts

"O Lord, what shame that You should need to beg us thus! 

Better that others might find us unavailable because of our occupation with You, 

rather than for us to be slow to come,

so dull to hear, so cold of heart, so indolent (lazy) of soul."

I have spent the past several months running after God like I never have before. Getting to know Him intimately and letting Him know me. Yes, He already knows me, but there is power in it when you confess with your mouth. God has given me visions, words, and I have even felt His embrace. The love that I have felt from and for My Daddy is indescribable. To worship and to soak in His presence has been my desire. He has been pouring into me and I have kept my eyes open for opportunities that He puts in front of me. I have put my priorities on God, my husband, my children, and those God is calling me to minister to. But those that find me "unavailable" are unable to see the heart. ( "...The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" 1 Samuel 16:7)

I do not want God's heart to ever have to longingly beg for my attention. In today's worldliness we are pulled in so many directions and we have so many demands for our time. What do we choose? What get's neglected? I would rather be unavailable to others than to neglect my Daddy and the work of my Father's business. There is a great cost in doing so.

The eyes and hearts of the world, and at times even the church, do not see and understand. His word says, "do not judge...for in the same way you judge others, you will be judged." Matt. 7:1-2. Oh, how quick we in the church are to judge. If it is not our way, it is wrong. I have seen this type of judgement, I have been on the receiving end, and I have even given it out. Jesus even experienced it after healing on the Sabbath in John 7. He went against the status quo and followed the leading of His Father in almost everything He did.

We cannot see what is happening in someone's heart and often times, what God is doing is outside of the norms. If someone has pulled back from serving in the church to devote more time to seeking intimacy with the Lord, who are we to judge them? Jesus, in John 7:24 says, "stop judging by mere appearances, but instead, judge correctly." 

I am finding that as I grow closer to God and the more I step into His will the more judgement comes against me. But the ONLY judgement worthy of my attention is that of my Beloved. People may not  understand because I don't talk to them as much as I used to or because I'm doing things differently, but I want to be about my Father's business. I don't want to be slow to respond or dull to hear. I want to be so in-love with my Beloved and so close to Him that I lose myself. HIS opinion is all that matters, for He alone knows my heart. My only desire is to be in His presence and when the day of "true" judgement comes to stand in front of Him and hear Him say, "Well done, My good and faithful friend".