Joni and Friends Daily Devotional
Aspen Leaves
"As you do not know the path of the wind... so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things." Ecclesiastes 11:5
It may be too early for Fall where you live, but not if you're in Colorado. Right now the aspen groves along the front range of the Rockies are turning from green to golden. Nothing lifts the soul like the sight of a hillside of yellow aspen leaves quivering in a brisk mountain breeze. I've seen aspens in the wind. The leaves are so delicate, so small, their stems so fragile, that they flutter in the slightest of breezes. Aspen leaves seem to tremble even when the air is barely moving - this is how sensitive they are.
I want to be that sensitive to the Spirit's touch, don't you? A soul that is sensitive to sin, that resonates at the slightest movement of the Spirit. A soul that quivers when the breath of God all but touches it. How do we become this sensitive? Simple: be ready, stretch out your branches, unfurl your heart to God, for you never know when His wind will rise your way. After all, like the wind, the Spirit is uncontrollable and unpredictable. Who can harness the wind or the Spirit? "...His way is in the whirlwind and the storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet" (Nahum 1:3).
John 3:8 reminds us that "'The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.'" Just as the wind cannot be controlled or predicted, yet its effects can be witnessed; also it is with the Holy Spirit. He cannot be controlled, but the proof of His work is always there.
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To be "an aspen leaf" is to be sensitive to the movement of God in your life. Ask God for a soul sensitive to sin. Pray that God will make your soul tremble at the slightest stirring of the Spirit in your life. You may not be able to control the wind of God's workings, but you can control the degree to which you are sensitive to good and evil, or right and wrong.
I stretch out my branches to You today, Lord. Let me catch the movement of Your Spirit. May I be sensitive to Your touch.
Blessings,
Joni and Friends
www.joniandfriends.org
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