Online Devotions: Unite My Heart

Sunday, September 3, 2017

Unite My Heart

September 2 (Psalm 86:11)

…unite my heart to fear your name. (ESV)

We have become a new species. We are no longer homo sapiens, Latin for “wise human being.” We have become homo crazyicus distracticus, or “crazy distracted person,” itself a branch of homo modernicus, “modern man.” In fact, talking about how distracted we are and weighing the benefits and the drawbacks of our tech-dependent, interconnected society, has become a commonplace. You know it as well as I do. Your heart and mind are like a glorious, stained glass panel that has been shattered into a million jagged fragments.

I need to pray this one part of Psalm 86:11 over and over again, for I am at my best when my heart is united and focused on God. I long for those moments when it is. I truly do. Yet there are just so many things pulling at my attention, from genuine responsibilities to the blinking lights of distracted temptation.

Friends, many of us have entered a state where it is almost impossible to marshal our thoughts into anything like coherence. We simply cannot slow down or shut out the noise. Fortunately, help is just a cry away. Pray the words of this verse and notice their purpose. We cry to God to unite the pieces of our distracted hearts not just so we can have a few moments of peace, although that is a pleasant benefit, but to focus more clearly on Him.

Father, unite my heart to fear Your name. I am struggling to do this on my own. I want to be with You, to sit in Your presence, and to hear Your voice, but I just cannot shut out the noise of life. Unite my heart to fear Your name. I pray this in the name of Jesus, my Lord and Savior, amen.

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History of Online Devotions

In January of 1999, I began the Online Devotions with the teens of the church we were attending. Each week they would receive a verse of Scripture, a short reflection, and a prayer. Over the years others subscribed to this email list, and soon the Online Devotions were going out to people across the country and beyond.

In 2007 I published in book format a collection called Desert Days: Forty Devotions for Men.

After suggestions from several readers, I launched in 2010 the Online Devotions blog. Devotions are still available each week by email, and if you would like to subscribe, please indicate so in the comment box.

As I have always said, if one of these devotions touches you, you can be sure it was from God. If one leaves you flat, then there was too much of me in it.