Hosanna Restoration Church

I think that almost every body of believers has prayed hoping that they too would have a building shaking experience. I also think that in one form or another, God always answers those prayers. There have been testimonies of altars splitting, fire departments coming on the scene because people have seen flames on the outside of the church, and times when no one could leave the building because the presence of God was so strong, just to name a few. We have all heard about reports such as these or experienced something ourselves that we could call a shaking experience, the question is what comes after the shaking? What comes after the touch of God?

Did the believers in Acts continue forever in that same state of one accord? Did everyone press on to perfection? Did zeal for the Lord continue and consume them for the rest of their days? Obviously, some of them kept pressing, and just as obviously, some of them did not. We know that Paul wrote to the Galatians asking them what had happened to them. He asked why they started in the spirit and turned back. In Ephesians he reminded them that God had blessed them with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places and prayed that their understanding would be opened up to see what was theirs. In Colossians, he was telling them how they had been delivered from darkness and seated in heavenly places and how they should now put off the old man and put on the new man.

So we look at all of this realizing that we can certainly learn something from it. We could say that it is good to know we are not the only ones who do not stay on track and use it as an excuse to remain complacent. Or we could take it as a warning to watch out for the things that derail us. Or, depending on where we are in our walk with the Lord we could thank God that our zeal is intact and determine to keep it that way. These are just a few choices to consider.

One thing that this has brought to my mind is the importance of remaining shakable; not shakable in our commitment to God, but shakable by the move of God in our lives. Yes, it is sad when a person loses their zeal, but it is not nearly as sad as if a person loses their zeal and then cannot or will not be shaken by the realization that they have left the Lord behind. I believe this would fall under the category of developing a hard heart.

So today is a day to survey our hearts once again. Have we experienced the shaking awakening that causes us to overflow with love for God? If you say no to that, then receive Jesus Christ and be blessed. Next, if we have experienced the shaking, where are we now? Are we tender and willing to take inventory to see if in fact we have become complacent? If our zeal is running on high, are we thankful to God for that and willing to take this as a reminder to stay stirred up? Don’t just visit the presence of God occasionally; be determined to live in it!