Being with Him
by Annalene Holtzhausen
Recently, whilst doing my homework for a Ladies’ Bible study I attend, I read this verse and the words ‘be with Him’ just stood out on the page. Jesus firstly wanted His disciples to just be with Him, and only then would He send them out to preach and perform miracles.
It’s easy to understand the meaning of these words, but I wanted to make it more practical and relevant to my everyday living. I realised that it has become quite a challenge in this day and age to just be. Our days and weeks are filled with to-do-lists that sometimes seem endless. Our prayer life can subsequently become a list of questions and requests. Performance drives our way of living and everything becomes a cycle of our effort versus the outcome we desire. In all this we forget how to just be.
What does it mean to be with Jesus and why does He desire this? Jesus loved His disciples dearly and wanted them to grow in His love and teaching. Spending time with someone we love causes some of their ways to rub off on us. We watch, grow and learn over time. This cannot happen overnight.
If Jesus sent the disciples out immediately, without allowing them to grasp who He really was, they would not have been able to teach His truth to others. Jesus loved them too much to throw them in the deep end without knowing who they were in Him. He also knew they needed maturity to face whatever was coming their way. His love for them came before His plans for them.
This brings us back to the importance of allowing Jesus to be the starting point and focus of everything we do. Before we react or make decisions, we should be with the Lord and just hear His heart. When we have heard from Him, the way we think and react comes from a different place. It comes from His heart and is different from reacting out of fear, anger, shame or guilt.
The Lord will reveal to you what it means to just be with Him, if you ask Him. It’s a place of peace, calm, acceptance and love. Being with the Lord is to come without a list of questions and requests, where we firstly seek His face, learn from Him and allow Him to speak into our lives. His promise for us in Philippians 4:7 (AMP) says, ‘And the peace of God [that peace which reassures the heart, that peace] which transcends all understanding, [that peace which] stands guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus [is yours}’.
Prayer: Dear Jesus, teach me to be with You and learn from You before I venture into each day. Thank You for Your wonderful gift of peace. In it, is Your strength that guides me through every situation and guards my heart and mind. Amen.
Annalene Holtzhausen is on the Associate Team at Ellel, Africa. She is married to Renier, who introduced her to Ellel Ministries. She is a full-time mother to their two boys. Her passion is for the restoration of women’s hearts and for people to find their worth in the Lord.
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