Dwelling Deeper (Part 2)

I wrote a post a little bit ago about dwelling deep within the holy of holies in our hearts. Please go here if you have not read it. This post is my follow up as I continue to process these things.

I was doubled over in pain. Diarrhea wracked my body. While I waited it out, I picked up a little book called His Thoughts Said, His Father Said by Amy Carmichael. (She is one of my heros...a life given to Jesus in India!) I had recently written the aforementioned post about dwelling with God and even mentioning her name as one who seemed to not allow how she felt physically to impact her joy.

There I was, feeling quite miserable, and I stumbled on to this passage from this wonderful little book and I was stunned: (sorry for the details...God shows up at the craziest times!!)

Dwell Deep

His thoughts said, My longing is to heal the broken and the weak, to defend the maimed, and to lead the blind unto the sight of the glory of the Lord. My choice is to be a corn of wheat and fall into the ground and die. Then why these waverings?

His Father said, Too much of thy surface is exposed to the breath of every wind that bloweth. Thou must learn to dwell deep.

And the son who had wavered answered humbly, Renew within me a settled spirit. Establish me with Thy directing Spirit. My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed. I will sing and give praise.

My heart lept! There it was! Proof that my dear Amy Carmichael needed to consciously go deep in order to tolerate the circumstances she faced in the world. (How could she have lived among the neediest in the world without aching for their healing till it killed her?!?!? THIS IS HOW!)

Just then I pulled this lovely tee shirt out of my drawer for the day. (One of our adoption fundraising shirts!) Isn't this just incredible? I was beginning to get what God was teaching me! (Complete with diagram!) The secret to true, everlasting joy! No matter how my body felt, no matter how many children melting down around me, no matter what atrocities I may encounter as I travel around the world. Dwell deep down in that secret space with the Lord. 

I love that Amy pointed out that too much of her was above ground...too much of her was feeling the wind above the surface. She needed to go DEEPER. Now those verses about hiding myself in God make sense.

Psalm 17:8 "Keep me as the apple of your eye, hide me in the shadow of your wings..." (emphasis added)

And take a minute to soak this one in with great joy:


Psalm 27:5 "For in the day of trouble He will keep me safe in His dwelling;
He will hide me in the shelter of His tabernacle and set me high upon a rock."

WOW!!! That was how I got here in the first place--realizing that my body is God's tabernacle (temple) and that I needed to dwell with Him in the Holy of Holies!!

Isn't God so amazing to show us such sweet things?

So my challenge now is that when things overwhelm, threaten, frighten and intimidate--I beg to go deeper with Him in that special place and have less of me exposed to the surface winds.  More than just having deep roots...it's dwelling there with great joy. Having MORE of my life spent in that quiet space with Him than taking in life from the surface. How to work that out with 4 children, a household to manage, two businesses and an adoption underway is mine to work out on a moment by moment basis.

How do you dwell? Do you go deeper when it gets tough? Let us seek to live deeper with God in the secret place so that we can tolerate that which blows in our lives above the surface.

We will be blessed beyond measure by His presence.

"How good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things You do."  Psalm 73: 28