Excitement at the Door

Lying quietly in the sun beside the sliding glass doors that lead to our deck is a favorite pastime of Beamer and Kari. Whether sleeping, looking out the window or keeping a keen eye to see if I may drop a morsel of food while I work in the kitchen, these pups enjoy that peaceful spot. Suddenly the distinct sound of an anticipatory whine comes from extremely alert dogs. Prancing and jumping at the door soon follow. As excitement increases, Kari begins leaping in the air at more than twice her height. (The paw prints on the glass door attest to her acrobatic feat.) Something has been moving in or behind our back yard.

By the time I reach the door to let them out, I can see nothing that would cause this excitement. Both dogs race toward the back corner of the yard. I’m assuming that a rabbit or a squirrel had caught their attention and then swiftly fled. There is an easement behind our yard where children often play or people walk their pets, but I would most likely have been able to catch a glimpse if that had been what my animals had seen. This had been more subtle and quick.  Laughing at the excitement level that Kari had displayed, I returned to what I had been doing and allowed the dogs to spend some time outside.             

We can enjoy time just resting in the presence of God. Worship music may be playing or the Scriptures may be open before our eyes. Then just as suddenly, the truth that we had not seen before can be spoken to our hearts by the Holy Spirit. God’s presence suddenly seems more real and intense. Do we display the same exuberance with which Kari jumped into the air when that animal caught her eye? Does our heart leap causing us to desire to understand everything that this gentle whisper entails? Even before his birth, John (the Baptist) had this reaction to the presence of Jesus who was also yet to be born into this world. “And it occurred that when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb,” (Luke 1:41AMP) There was an excitement at the entrance of the tangible presence of God.

As born-again believers we have the presence of the Holy Spirit abiding in our lives every day. This is a source of hope, contentment and joy. “You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy, at Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11 AMP) At times the Lord will speak clearly to our hearts. We may be rereading a familiar Scripture and suddenly see a truth that had not previously been obvious. We may suddenly know the direction to go in an area that we have been praying. There are so many ways that the Holy Spirit may enlighten us. When we see something clearly, do we get excited and run after it? Is our excitement uncontainable to the point that our inner man leaps into the air?

We have a great example in Scripture of a young boy who responded well when hearing the voice of God. Young Samuel was a servant of Eli, the priest. (See 1 Samuel 3:4–10) We see his exuberant response the first time he heard God call his name. “When the Lord called, Samuel! And he answered, Here I am. He ran to Eli and said, Here I am, for you called me.” (1 Samuel 3:4-5a AMP) Even before the young Samuel knew he was hearing from God he jumped up and ran to answer. Could this exuberance of youth be part of what Jesus was referring to when he commanded us to come as children? We know that he desires we trust like a children, but I wonder if there wasn’t just a little bit more when He said, “And said, Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving], you can never enter the kingdom of heaven [at all].” (Matthew 18:3 AMP)

As we grow in our relationship with the Lord, we should never lose that same excitement of hearing His voice. Whenever something appears to “jump off the page” at us, we need to be ready to “jump up” to pursue it and find the full meaning of what is there for us. The critter that captured Kari’s attention was elusive, but God will never withhold His truth from our pursuit. He is waiting to see if we will chase after it. Will this be our response to a glimpse of truth? “My whole being follows hard after You and clings closely to You; Your right hand upholds me.” (Psalm 63:8 AMP)

When God speaks to your, heart leap with excitement and chase hard after all He wishes to teach you. “Do not quench (suppress or subdue) the [Holy] Spirit;” (1 Thessalonians 5:19 AMP) Pursue Him instead.