David Jeremiah - My hearts desire: living every moment in the wonder of worship

MY
HEARTS
DESIRE

LIVING EVERY MOMENT
in the WONDER of WORSHIP

DAVID
JEREMIAH

Copyright 2002 by David Jeremiah.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Thomas Nelson, Inc., titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail SpecialMarkets@ThomasNelson.com.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published in association with Yates & Yates, LLP, Literary Agents, Orange, California.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations used in this book are from The New King James Version, copyright 1979, 1980, 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Publishers.

Other Scripture references are from the following sources:
The Holy Bible, New Century Version (NCV), Copyright 1987, 1988, 1991 by W Publishing Group, Nashville, Tennessee 37214. Used by permission.

The King James Version of the Bible (KJV).

Cover Design: The Office of Bill Chiaravalle
www.officeofbc.com
Interior Design: Inside Out Design & Typesetting

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Jeremiah, David.

My hearts desire: living every moment in the wonder of worship / David Jeremiah: edited by Rob Suggs.
p. cm.
ISBN 1-59145-000-4 (hardcover)
ISBN 1-59145-044-6 (international paperback)
ISBN 978-1-59145-154-9 (trade paper)
1. Christian lifeBaptist authors. 2. Worship. I. Suggs, Rob. II. Title.
BV4501.3.J47 2002
248.3dc21
2002068543

Printed in the United States of America
07 08 09 10 11 QW 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

DEDICATION

To my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Who alone is worthy to receive glory and honor and power and riches and wisdom and strength and blessing to Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!

REVELATION 45

Contents

A S THIS BOOK IS BEING RELEASED, Donna and I have just finished twenty years of ministry at Shadow Mountain Community Church. These have been wonderful years of serving our Lord and ministering to a gracious congregation. Each Sunday as our church gathers I am filled with a sense of expectation as I anticipate our time of corporate worship. Over the years we have experienced some awesome moments of wonder as we have sensed the presence of the Lord in our midst. Worshiping God as a body of believers is one of the special privileges He has granted to His children.

But this book is not primarily about congregational worship. My Hearts Desire is about personal worship... one-on-one worship with Almighty God. Worship was never meant to be a Sunday-only experience. God is not seeking for churches to worship Him, He is seeking for individuals to worship Him. As worshiping God becomes our everyday lifestyle experience, we discover that our times together with the family of God take on deeper meaning. In other words, worship is not a one-vii hour experience once a week! Worship is a moment-by-moment relationship with God that lasts all week long.

I am still growing in my understanding of what it means to live every moment in the wonder of worship. I am so very thankful for those who have helped shape my thinking. Steve and Susan Caudill joined our ministry staff over a decade ago. Together they have led us in worshiping God each Sunday. We have spent many hours talking about worship and seeking with all our hearts to lead our people into Gods presence on the Lords Day. Thank you, Steve and Susan, for your commitment to excellence, your faithfulness to God, and your desire to make worship the hearts desire of each one of us.

Rob Suggs is the writereditor who helps make my thoughts come to life. He understands my heart and is able to take my words and make them crisper and brighter. I always look forward to working with Rob, and I trust we shall be able to be partners for many books to come!

Sealy Yates and I have been great friends for many years and almost a dozen books. As my literary agent, he represents me to our publishers and regularly mentions my name before the Lord. He cares about me and the work that God has called me to do. Every pastor needs someone like Sealy in his life!

As my administrative assistant, Carrie Mann has managed the many phone conferences and meetings that helped bring this project to completion. Dianne Stark and Barbara Boucher read the manuscript and made valuable suggestions. Helen Barnhart was of great assistance in locating bibliographical references. Thanks, ladies, for your diligent help!

I would also like to express my appreciation to Joey Paul and Byron Williamson for encouraging me to put my thoughts on worship into writing. Throughout this entire project we have had many hours of interaction about My Hearts Desire, and I have loved the sense of teamwork. Thank you, Joey and Byron, for allowing me to write one of the first books published by Integrity.

Finally I want to express my deepest appreciation to my wife Donna. Without her encouragement, I would never have written the first book. Our partnership in all that God has done and is doing in our lives is one of my greatest treasures. Together we are praying that God will use My Hearts Desire to bring blessing to many lives and glory to our Saviors name!

DAVID JEREMIAH San Diego, California

1
A View from a Throne

ONE
A View from a Throne

O UR HEARTS ARE POUNDING as the great doors swing open before usthe doors where earth is left behind and heaven begins. Almost feverish with anticipation, you and I step into the great room, and were immediately and completely overcome by all that lies before our senses.

No eye has seen a room of such sparkling magnificence; no ear has heard such music. There is no art or edifice in the mortal world that could have prepared us for this. We cant speak or even allow our world-weakened eyes to wonder at the glories that fill the throne room of the King of creation. Without our even realizing it, great tears are streaming down our cheeks.

The ceiling of the room is too high to be seen; it rises majestically to the farthest reaches of infinity. The walls gleam with a living tapestry of the Kings mighty works through the ages. And the angels surround us as embodiments of light and song, lifting up praises to the Name that is above all names. The very air we breathe has the sweet taste of paradise and intense joy that is beyond description. But all these things only lead our eyes to the throne, for the King Himself is there.

Our eyes are inadequate to take in His glory, of course. But we do gaze upon His hand, the hand that shaped the contours of every planet and flung every star into space, the hand that brought light from darkness and order from chaos. Something rustles in His hand: an ageless document. The scroll glows with the light of wisdom and providence, and it is sealed not once, but seven times. Here in our Fathers hand is the title deed to earth.

The biblical Book of Revelation describes this scroll and its procession of seals. Through the chapters of that book, the seals are unfastened one by one as the final business of time, the final details of Gods plan, come to final fruition. Judgment and wrath lie in the unfastening of these seals; redemption and victory, too. As each seal is removed, every question finds its solution. Every riddle is forever solved. And for that reason, the eyes of hundreds of millions of souls watch intently.