My friend Gloria and I have traveled many, many miles together, some in a vehicle and some in the Spirit, growing in the grace of our Lord who we share as Father. Yesterday was one of those days. We spent several hours celebrating Jesus in the form of chatter, laughter, tears and food. Pretty much in that order and of equal importance to our spiritual health.
As we shared what scriptures we’d read and the significance to our day, Gloria shared the Nazarite vow and this morning it’s still fresh on my mind. The Nazarite vow comes from the Hebrew word “nazir” meaning consecrated or separated. It was a vow to abstain from specific things, for example wine, grapes, cutting of hair or to come into contact with a dead body, and much more. It was a set time and at the end of that time a sacrifice was made in great detail. None of the event was taken lightly. It was serious business. Oh, to have a Nazarite heart…
One set apart for the service of God. David said in Psalm 4:3
But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.
I want to be used by God and I want Him to hear my pleas. But I know I’m not nearly serious enough. I’m not referring to abstaining from wine (which I don’t drink anyway) or grapes or not cutting my hair. For me it’s a heart matter. I need a time of prayer, a time set aside and exclusively His each day.
Life goes on… I realize that. We have dishes to wash and work to do. But there needs to be a consecrated effort when we love on God, spending time one to One, in His presence; if we have any expectation of God doing a mighty work in our lives. And just like it was an outward appearance of the Nazarite that he was set apart, our friends and family should know that we’re setting ourselves apart from the world for a time. It’s not for a show, it’s for them to know that God is so important in my life that I’ve set this time apart for Him away from the things of the world.
For me its mornings, for you perhaps its another time of day. But more than the timeslot, it’s the consecrated effort that God sees we’re desiring Him to know that He is key in our lives.
Yes, the world needs to see Jesus, but Jesus needs to see us. Spend some time in His presence today, He alone is worthy