Simple Devotion to Christ

In my last post, “How to Tune Into God’s Live Love Stream,” I shared that the Spirit of Christ—the Word of God—is continually live streaming His native language of love to those who belong to Him (John 10:27; 1 John 4:8).

I also qualified that statement by saying that God’s live love stream is unceasingly welling up from within the new heart of the believer in Christ, whereas for the unbeliever (who does not have the Word of God living in him or her), He is broadcasting His love signal from the outside in (John 7:38).

Big distinction here.

The point is, no matter where Christians are or what they are doing, they can tune into God’s Loving Channel every second of every day.

Not the “God-So-Loved-the-World” Channel where we have an outward (head) focus, but the private “God-Loves-the-One-and-Only-[insert your name]-Who-Lives-Eternally-in-His-Son” Channel where we have an inward (heart) focus.

Our new, pure heart is where the Spirit of Christ actually lives and moves and has His being (Ezekiel 36:25-27; Acts 17:28).

Tuning into this exclusive, private channel is simply a matter of intentionally shifting our focus from the outside world (including head noise) and tuning into the heart’s transmission of His up-close-and-personal love stream meant for our ears (and mind’s eye) only.

In my last post, I shared that all God really wants from those who belong to Him is simple and pure devotion to Christ. This is based on 2 Corinthians 11:3, where the apostle Paul writes,

“I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”

In this verse, God is basically saying,

I want you to fix your attention on Me with excited anticipation of what I will communicate to you, resting assured that everything you hear will sound like My perfect love.

I believe one of the ways Christians can learn to hear the voice of God and experience His tangible love is by focusing on the meanings of the words simplicity, purity, and devotion.

In today’s post, we will focus on the Greek meaning of the word simplicity: “singleness of mind, infused by God through the Spirit.”

The next two posts will be devoted to the meanings of the words purity and devotion and ways to practically apply them in our Monday-through-Sunday living.

I mentioned in a previous post that when it comes down to it, people usually end up doing what they want to do.

So, if we are going to tune into God’s live love stream and experience Him in tangible ways, our desires will need to be strong enough that we are willing set aside precious time to tune into His love and hear His voice.

Thus, “singleness of mind” comes into play here.

If your desire to experience His love is not strong enough to change your schedule, lay your hand on your heart right now and ask Him sincerely, “Jesus, stir up a firestorm of hunger in me to experience your love in tangible ways.”

You can be sure that He will be faithful to answer this prayer because He wants to reveal His exclusive, one-of-a-kind love for you to you (1 John 5:14).

In my last post I invited you to schedule a quiet time where you would be able to read and participate in this post by having a pen and paper (or journal), ready to record what you sense God revealing to you through this focused time of devotion to Him.

If  you made that commitment, then more than likely, you already have a strong desire to hear God’s voice and experience His tangible love.

And that desire originated in His heart for you to experience His love in meaningful ways.

Namely, it was “infused by God through His Spirit,” which indwells your new heart 24/7/365.

I highly recommend that you have instrumental music playing lightly in the background (I realize you might not be prepared to do that today, since I forgot to tell you in the last post) while spending focused time with Him.

There is something about music that makes us more receptive, engaging the right, intuitive (creative) part of our brains versus the left, logical part (analytical reasoning) of our brains.

The following are my favorite Christian instrumental albums that I listen to almost every day while I’m spending focused time with the Lord:

Forever (Instrumental) (Live) – Hillsong Worship
The Invitation to the Quiet Place – Piano Solos by Klaus
Stillness – (another collection of piano solos by Klaus)
Serenity – (compilation all about rest by Klaus)

Let’s go ahead and get started with today’s practical exercise in learning to hear God’s voice and enjoy His love.

1. Write at the top of your paper (or journal page) today’s date and time and title it “My Journey of Simple & Pure Devotion to Christ.”

2. Write a prayer from your heart telling Jesus that you would like to hear His voice and experience His love in tangible ways during this special time where your attention is focused on Him.

3. Imagine you are sitting across the table from Him in a coffee shop or sitting beside Him on a park bench (or any other place you would enjoy a conversation with a close companion) and hear Him saying to you, “[Your name], I am thrilled to be spending this time with you. How are you? I would love to hear what’s on your heart.”

4. Write your response. If you are struggling, please don’t be afraid to be completely honest with Him. He loves you perfectly and wants to meet every need in your life. Don’t try to analyze or evaluate what you are writing during this time. Just get it out of your heart and onto paper.

For example:

• Jesus, today, I want to thank you for a brand-new day in You on this earth. You have been so incredibly kind and good to me. Thank You for loving me first—and most. I love you so much! And then listen and write down what you sense Him saying in response. Please focus on your physical heart area (His home) and not your head.

• Jesus, I’m struggling with _______________. You already know this and are happy that I am sharing this burden with You. Would you kindly give me Your wisdom and power to process this and give me the courage to take any action that You recommend? And then listen and write down what you sense Him saying in response. Again, please focus on your heart instead of your head.

Take all the time that you need to do this. You might end up writing one paragraph or one page. It doesn’t matter. There is no pressure here.

The most important thing is that you begin to develop this wonderful habit.

Please don’t be concerned about whether or not you are hearing Him correctly while you are writing. This will interfere with the creative flow. You will have time later to test what you wrote against Scriptural truth.

If you want confirmation, share what you sense Him saying to you with a spiritual mentor/counselor (Prov. 11:14).

I’m so excited for you as you begin your journey into simple and pure devotion to Christ!

In my next post, we will be focusing on the Greek meaning of the word purity (“exciting reverence, sacred, immaculate”) and look at practical ways we can experience pure devotion to Christ.

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If you enjoyed this post, I invite you to check out all of my books and my video series based on my first devotional.