Holiness

Psalm 91

It was February 2010 in Little Rock, Arkansas. A freak snowstorm had blown through the city. I sat inside the dark hospital room holding my dad’s hand for what I knew would be the last time. Alone, I sat by his bed and read to him the words from Psalm 91 while warm tears rolled down my cheeks. I had prayed the last three verses of this Psalm over and over, expecting God to heal my dad.

“The Lord says, ‘I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation.’”

Psalm 91:14-16 NLT

"The Lord says, 'I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name.'" Psalm 91:14 NLT Click To Tweet

I Prayed For The Miraculous

With all my being, I hoped the “long life” part would prevail. I prayed for the miraculous. I knew Jesus could heal my dad. Why was He not doing it? Shock began to set in and the need for escape overtook me. I called my dad’s friend who was with us to come to the hospital to pick me up.

I walked through the halls of the hospital, following the route I had taken many times before, but could not seem to find my way. It was the middle of the night and I was all alone when I made it to the glass foyer where my ride was waiting outside. I got into his car where his arms were open, waiting to embrace me.

He drove me back to the hotel in complete silence, where he was going to drop me off and pick up my mother. I slept restlessly for two hours before I heard the phone ring and my mom was on the other end telling me they were turning off all the machines and I needed to return to the hospital.

Holy Holy Holy

As I dressed, the world seemed to stand still. I closed my eye and in the quietness of my mind I heard the song, “Holy Holy Holy.” With my eyes still shut, and the song playing in my head, I saw a picture of Jesus holding my dad’s lifeless body in His arms and walking him towards a great light.

This vision gave me such peace. I knew my dad’s suffering had ended, but mine was now beginning. The grief process, at times, felt unbearable, but I would go back to this beautiful picture the Lord gave me and I would have peace. There is no greater assurance than knowing without a doubt where your loved ones are after their time on Earth is over. Other than my own desire to have him here, there is no reason I would want to bring him back. He is with Jesus.

Holiness

This vision was one of the first times I ever really grasped the magnitude of God’s holiness. The glorious bright light Jesus was walking towards was undescribable. The 19th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, the Qof ק, means God’s holiness. It has the value of 100. Along with the number 7, it represents the number of completeness. He alone is all we need.

When we enter the holy presence of God, something within us changes. The need to worship Him grows until we can do nothing else but worship. Have you ever felt this? Have you ever been in church, a worship service, or prayer time when you felt overwhelmed by His presence? What did you do?

Revelation is one of my favorite books in the Bible. One reason is because it is a book filled with worship. I want us to look at what the angels and other beings say as John recounts his revelation.

”Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.’”

Revelation 4:8 NIV

”Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.'”… Click To Tweet

Worship

These four living creatures are in the center of the scene John is describing. They are the closest to the throne of God and did you notice, day and night, they never stop worshipping. In the following chapter, we see the angels, the living beings, and the elders begin to worship. (Read more on worship here )

“Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they were saying: ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!’”

Revelation 5:11-12 NIV

What Is To Come

Can you imagine this scene? The multitudes are praising God. And this is what is to come. Doesn’t this give you hope? It sure does for me. When I look around today, my heart breaks for the lost around me. When I sit in my office at school and see so many children hurting from situations I could never imagine going through, and I want more than anything to give them the hope of Jesus.

To know the scene above is what I have to look forward to, I know God is so much bigger than my feeble mind can understand. I hope and pray that one day I will be amongst that glorious scene of worshipers and I will see your face and the faces of those I pass on a daily basis, because I pray God will give you and me the opportunity to share His love with them.

Is there someone God has placed on your heart to share His love with? Do you ever feel a need to pray for someone? Has God given you a message to share? I want to encourage you to move forward with those nudges He is giving you. If there is nothing else the past few years have taught us, and that is that nothing is certain. Be the catalyst for revival.

Thank you for sharing…