IV.   How to Get the Desire to be with Him !!!

                my heart and my flesh cry out for You, the living God

And Jesus said to His disciples, "if anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." Matthew 16:24
A. Outine:
Open the Door!
Count on Him!
Accept His Gift of Weakness!
Depend on Him! God Himself will establish You in Him.
My Prayer

B. Open the Door!
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock;
If any man hear my voice and open the
Door, I will come in to him, and will
Sup with him, and he with me."   Rev 3:20




William Holman Hunt 1827-1910 famous painting   " The Light of the World" 1853-1854 "... presents Christ with a lamp in one hand knocking at a door. The door has no handle on the outside, and it is overgrown with weeds and vines. The interpretation posted below the painting in St. Paul's Cathedral in London remarks: 'On the lefthand side of the picture is seen this door of the human soul. It is fast barred; its bars and nails are rusty; it is knitted and bound to its stanchions [ = upright pole ] by creeping tendrils of ivy, showing that it has never been opened...'"   Willard 243




C. Count on Him!
• "Looking toward Jesus, the author and finisher
  of our faith.. Heb 12:2
  
• "He who has began a good work in you will
  complete it." Phil 1:6
  
• "For it is God who works in you both to will
  and to do." Phil 2:13

D. Accept His Gift of Weakness!

E. Depend on Him! God Himself will establish You in Him.

F. Assignment: Spiritual Exercises - Answers to Questions

• Review the above by recalling major principles and ideas
• Examine the above through critical thinking and questioning
• Apply the principles to your life
• Compare the principles with biblical examples and instruction
• Think more deeply and in different ways about the above.
  [ = this may be viewed as "extra" study for the serious student ]

My Prayer: "My soul longs for Your courts. My heart and my flesh cry out for You, the living God." (Psalm 84:2) "My soul hungers to be close enough to You to feel Your heartbeat and sense of Your love flowing into my being. "Fill my heart with such great knowledge of You that praising You becomes like the air I breath."   Book of Prayers 66