A Man After God's Own Heart (Paperback)

One summer some years ago I was privileged to be part of a team that conducted leadership conferences for pastors in the major cities of Australia. I'll never forget our first conference in Brisbane, Northern Australia. Brisbane is a beautiful city that basks in a pleasant semitropical climate with palm trees lining the streets and pineapples growing in fields along the roads leading to the countryside.

While staying in Brisbane, I was introduced to the Great Barrier Reef, which is famous among divers and snorkelers because of its crystal-clear blue waters. This famous reef extends for some 1,260 miles along the northeast coast above Brisbane. Its width varies from 10 to 90 miles wide. This massive and imposing barrier was produced, strangely enough, by tiny sea creatures called coral. These little animals live and die in colonies which, over the centuries, have built this amazing coral reef, parts of which are hundreds of feet deep.

Now, the Great Barrier Reef doesn't look alive. But because experts tell me that this astonishing reef is alive and is even continuing to grow as these tiny organisms live and die, I accept it as fact and marvel at what has been and is being produced.

Our Source of Growth

In a similar way, the Bible is amazing, too! At first glance, it looks like any other book. The pages have black ink on white paper, like the newspaper or the TV guide. And yet there is something very different and very alive about the Bible. Why is the Bible unique?

Claim #1 - The Bible claims to be the Word of God, which makes it the best possible source for learning the ways of God:
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16).

Claim #2 - The Bible claims to be true and never tries to justify its statements. You would assume that if the Bible is God's Word to us (Claim #1), we could also be assured of its truthfulness to us. Indeed, the psalmist wrote, "The law of the LORD is perfect" (Psalm 19:7). So, we can trust the Bible to give us correct advice for life and living.

Claim #3 - The Bible claims to be alive. Consider this amazing statement: "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12).

With claims like these, you and I should take special note and be at least a little curious as to what the Bible has to say about life and our priorities. I know that when I read the Bible, my life is transformed. I think differently. I act differently. I talk differently. No other book has the same effect on a person as the Bible! We can read books on any subject and receive information that will help us in one way or another. But when it comes to the heart and soul, only the Bible can bring true and lasting changes.

More importantly, if the Bible is God's own Word, and if you and I want to live as men after God's own heart, then there's no better place for us to go for guidance. Don't you agree? God wrote the Bible to tell us about His love for us and to show us how we can enjoy an active, meaningful relationship with Him. He also lets us know how we can best live our lives and the priorities that lead to fulfilled living. So if your desire is to be a man after God's heart, you'll want to learn what these priorities are. That of course, will mean taking the time to read the Bible.

The Encouragement to Grow

We naturally tend to consider it a tragedy when someone doesn't grow physically. But equally tragic is a Christian who is not growing spiritually or whose spiritual growth has been stunted. You see, brother, God desires for us to grow. In the Bible, growth is seen as a naturally occurring by-product of our life in Christ. In fact, we are commanded to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). The writer of the book o hebrews also assumed that with the passing of time his readers would grow to the point where they could be teaching others the basics of God's Word. But he had to rebuke his readers because they hadn't grown (Hebrews 5:12). As I said, spiritual growth should be a naturally occurring by-product of our life in Christ.

Thirsting for Growth

Several years before retirement, I volunteered for a two-week assignment with my Army Reserve Unit in support of a massive war game in California's Mojave Desert. After 20 years of Army service, I knew that this field exercise would be demanding. I also knew I shouldn't have volunteered, but I did! So there I was, commanding a medical team supporting one of the tank units...and it was August...with 120-degree weather. The heat was oppressive. All I could think about was water, water, and more water! My body craved that life-giving substance.

Friend the desire I had for water during those days is the kind of thirst we ought to have for God's Word. Our physical body knows that it cannot function without physical water, bo, too our spiritual being should realize that it cant function without the "living water" of God's Word. The psalmist described this craving for God in this way:

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, 0 God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God (Psalm 42:1-2).

Do you have this kind of craving for God and His Word? Just as water is the only thing that can relieve our thirst in the desert God's Word is the only thing that can satisfy our spiritual thirst. Only God's Word can give us encouragement in times of trial and clear direction when we're sifting through the chaos of our busy lives.

By the way, when it comes to spiritual growth, God doesn't leave you completely on your own. God's Spirit, who lives inside every believer, gives you the power and the desire to grow. Jesus promised that the Spirit will be your Guide and your Helper (John 14:16-17,26).

Between the Bible and the Holy Spirit, God has given you all you need for spiritual growth. Is the craving there? Why not satisfy it by spending more time with God in His Word? My prayer is that as you read this book, your hunger and thirst for God and your desire for His Word will grow.

A Personal Story About Growth

Earlier I mentioned that it's unfortunate when someone's physical growth is hindered by disease or by an accident. And stunted spiritual growth is tragic, too. Well, I am among those who, when I was young, went to church regularly... but that was it. So when this spiritually immature country boy went away to college, I was a prime candidate for a spiritual fall. I was similar to the "lost son" in the story Jesus told in Luke 15, who...

...got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living... When he came to his senses, he said,"... I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son" (verses 11-19).

Like this young son, I came to my senses at about age 30 and realized I was starving to death spiritually. I, too, looked up and came back to my heavenly Father. And, like the father in the story who was "filled with compassion," God received me back (as He does anyone who comes to his or her senses and turns back to Him).

Realizing that I had wasted more than a decade of living in "a distant country," I was eager to learn God's Word and grow spiritually I started reading through my Bible, beginning in Genesis 1, verse 1. Up to that time, I had never read through my Bible even once!

Like a man whose arm or leg has withered because of disability, my soul had withered because of the debilitating effects of sin. And like a man who starts up a physical therapy regimen designed to help him regain the use of an arm or a leg, I started "spiritual therapy" to regain my former strength, build even greater spiritual muscle, and, by God's grace, become useful to my heavenly Father. That was the desire of my grateful and penitent heart!

What about you? Is your story similar to mine? Have you lived or are you living in "a distant country" spiritually? If so, my hope is that you can recognize the value of desiring spiritual therapy or adhering to a spiritual regimen that will help you grow spiritually and strengthen your spiritual muscles. God desires that for you as His child. Do you desire that as well?

The Impact of Growth

What's remarkable about spiritual growth is the way it can impact every area of our lives. Not only will you and I be pleasing God and maturing as Christians, but we'll also see a significant positive effect on our relationships with others.

Each of us, as a Christian man, husband, father, and worker, has contact with many people-people whose lives we can impact if we grow.

Now for a few questions about your growth:

Do you want to be a strong, maturing man of God? Then take care of your first priority, which is to develop a closer relationship with God.

Do you want to be a good husband? Through your time spent with God and His Word, you will find the answers to everything you need to know about loving and caring for your wife.

Do you want to be a good father? Then cultivate a friendship with God that seeks to depend upon His Word for wisdom. This intimacy with your Father in heaven will give you the wisdom you need for raising your children.

Do you care about your coworkers? If so, you'll want to have the kind of relationship with God that allows the Spirit of God to work through your life and point others to Him.

Do you want your life to count? I know I do. And I believe you do, too! If you are ready to begin the growth process that will ensure that your life does count, then the place to start is with God. You need to tell Him of your renewed or reinvigorated desire to grow spiritually.

An Example of Growth

You've probably heard of John Wesley. This man after Gods own heart lived in the 1700s, and, along with his brother Charles, founded the Methodist Church. His life was one of great achievement as a result of dedicating himself to teaching God's Word to others. Because of his devotion to the Bible, John Wesley became known as a "man of one book"-the Book. He laid hold of the Bible because his heart's desire was to grow.. .and the Bible laid hold of him as well.

Every year, John Wesley and his followers would extend to God this prayer written by Wesley as a covenant to God expressing their desire to grow. If you would like to do so, you can make this your prayer for growth, too.

O blessed Jesus...because You have been pleased to give me your holy laws as the Rule of my life...I do here willingly put my neck under your yoke, and set my shoulder to your burden...And subscribing to all your laws as holy, just, and good, I solemnly take them as the Rule of my words, thoughts, and actions; promising that...I will endeavor to order and govern my whole life according to your direction, and will not allow myself in the neglect of any thing that I know to be my duty.

By committing yourself to growing spiritually and, by God's grace, living as a man after Gods own heart, you'll become a man of God who is eager to fulfill all the roles and responsibilities that God has placed before you.