Radical Devotion

“Devotion and distraction have never and will never co-exist in my Kingdom.”

Those are the words the Spirit of God almost shouted into my spirit a while back. It was during my daily quiet time with the Lord when He began to really pour some fresh truth into me about the critical importance of whole-hearted devotion. He promised to show me what RADICAL DEVOTION really looks like. He also said He would reveal to me my single greatest personal sin.

Now I don’t know about you, beloved, but that does not exactly set the stage for a warm and fuzzy moment with the Almighty. Especially if you are a Pastor and Evangelist who has dedicated nearly four decades of his life to the local church. Frankly, I considered myself to be pretty doggone devoted. That’s when the other shoe dropped.

“Gene, you are a man who is EASILY DISTRACTED.”

The Lord then began to reveal to me through my own error and oversight the tragic condition of the American Church in 2020. We live in a culture of distraction. A dozen different things are tugging at our attention every waking hour of the day. They are not necessarily bad things. Jobs. Children. Hobbies. News. Entertainment. Relationships. Responsibilities. Deadlines. Yes, even Ministry. I was a picture of the chaos in which the people of God have allowed themselves to be swallowed up.

“And (Jesus) said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, and with ALL your soul, and with ALL your mind.’” – Matthew 22:37

“Only fear the Lord and serve Him in truth with ALL your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you.” – 1 Samuel 12:24

I still believe the best commentary on the Bible is the Bible. If you were to look up the original Hebrew and Greek words for “all” in these two verses spoken by the Lord Jesus and a great Old Testament prophet, do you know what you would find them to mean in plain English? That’s right.  “ALL.”

I know of only one proven way to remove ourselves from the confusion and clamor of this world and purge the distractions which divide our hearts from the Father. That is PRAYER and FASTING. The Global Days of Prayer allow us to do just that, individually and corporately. Each of us in our prayer closet and all of us together in the house of prayer, crying out to God for Mercy and laying our hearts upon the altar to be consumed by His living fire. This is how we achieve whole-heartedness. This is how the Kingdom comes. This is how the Presence is hosted and remains.

God bless you and keep you.