Build Your Kingdom Here
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” John 10:27
It is absolutely amazing that Almighty God is a knowable God. He is not some mystical being in the clouds, but a very personal God that longs to be seen, heard and known. The Bible proves this to be true. It is astounding to me that we are able to hear God. He most often speaks through His word, but the truth is, He can make Himself heard and known in any way that He chooses.
I have always been fascinated by some of the stories of hearing God in the Bible. In Daniel 5 we see the human finger that wrote God’s message on the wall. In Exodus 3 we read about the voice of God speaking to Moses from within the burning bush. And a favorite of mine is found in Numbers 22 where we read about the donkey actually talking to Balaam.
I recently had one of those breathtaking encounters with God. Not a finger, fire or donkey, but Siri. The morning had been filled with reading the word, prayer and planning for an upcoming ministry meeting. I hopped into the car with my heart full of thanksgiving to be a small part of God’s work here on earth. The song, “Build Your Kingdom Here” by Rend Collective came to mind. I whispered a prayer, “Lord, that’s what I want to be about. I want my life to be about building your Kingdom here on earth for the rest of my life.” While backing out of the driveway, I asked Siri to help me fully embrace the moment.
“Siri, play ‘Build Your Kingdom Here’.” She answered, “Indeed, you are!”
INDEED YOU ARE!
Totally shocked, I pressed on the brake, stopping the car in the middle of the street. Tears dripped down my face. I gasped and made the request once again. This time the song began to play. I slowly pressed the pedal to pull myself from a dead stop. Trembling I drove on to my meeting.
God had spoken. Not through the lyrics, but through technology. Through Siri, He had affirmed the cry of my heart. It felt as if He had lovingly gripped my face and turned my full attention totally to Him. Doubts and unbelief fled and I drove to my meeting confident that I was on the right track.
He affirmed to me that what I am doing matters. Our work here on earth is fulfilling His purpose. He reigns over all of our plans. I hold my hands wide open to join Him in His work. It is not my work, my ministry, my serving. It is all Him. I just make myself fully available. He took up residence in my life some 50 years ago and He lives His life through me.
Hours later I returned to really listen to the lyrics. They are very much the desire of my heart. You can google the song for yourself, but here are a few lyrics. Let them be a prayer from your heart.
Build Your kingdom here
Let the darkness fear
Show Your mighty hand
Heal our streets and land
Set Your church on fire
Win this nation back
Change the atmosphere
Build Your kingdom here
We pray
Come set Your rule and reign
In our hearts again
Increase in us we pray
Unveil why we're made
Come set our hearts ablaze with hope
Like wildfire in our very souls
Holy Spirit, come invade us now
We are Your church
We need Your power in us.
My heart was set ablaze with hope to continue to build His kingdom here on earth. Open your eyes and your ears to see and hear the Living God. He longs to invade us, His church and fill us with His power to build HIs Kingdom right here, right now!