Ascend: An 11-Day Devotional With Red Rocks WorshipShembull

ASCEND

Have you ever felt far from God?

This song "Ascend" was written directly from Psalm 24 where David asks, “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place?” To put it in simpler terms, David is asking “Who can be in the Lord’s presence? ”It is a profound question, and one that is very familiar to every soul. Sometimes we feel that God is so close, and other times it may seem like He is completely unreachable.It’s often hard to remind ourselves of the truth we know: that God is omnipresent, He is available everywhere, to everyone, always. Psalm 139 tells us that we cannot outrun or hide from Him, yet we all have had the experience of feeling closer and more connected to Him in a particular season. Those are the palpable moments of nearness that make us feel alive! These are the times when we receive instruction, blessing, and vindication from our Heavenly Father; growing in deeper relationship and intimacy with Him.

Continuing in the Psalm, David gives us the recipe for encountering God. He answers his own question by stating that those with clean hands and pure hearts, those who do not put their trust in an idol or any other gods, those who truly seek the God of Jacob will experience His presence.That seems too easy, but I believe that is exactly the point. Often, without even recognizing it, we humans can lock our eyes on other ideals, other leaders, or other dreams in efforts to achieve or to fulfill a deep longing for security.In a culture which prioritizes our personal desires and preferences as utmost, it can be so easy to place Jesus in a seat of lesser honor. We habitually become caught up in the busyness that surrounds us and the sin patterns that consume us. Sadly, this inevitably leads us to neglect participating in the proximity God is offering to us. He is with us, but we miss Him.

If we want to grow in a deeper relationship with Jesus, then purity and making Him our number one must be our aim. Purity does not begin with us cleaning ourselves up so we can come to God, but by accepting the free gift of grace and making ourselves available to his sanctifying work. His kindness will always lead us to repentance, our repentance will lead us to purity, and that purity will empower us to recognize and enjoy God’s presence.

1. What areas of your life do you need to make Jesus #1 again?
2. Are there any areas of your life that you need to repent of today?

VIDEO BLURB: If we want to grow in a deeper relationship with Jesus, then purity and making Him our sole focus must be our goal. We don’t make ourselves pure, we simply accept the free gift of grace through Jesus and submit ourselves to the sanctifying work of going from glory to glory. His kindness will always lead us to repentance, our repentance will lead us to purity, and that purity will enable us to recognize and enjoy God’s presence.