It is difficult to call this a conclusion; that word seems so final. What you’ve just experienced is not the end but the beginning of something much more. The Lord led you through some joyous times as well as a few difficult moments. You’ve been challenged and encouraged, confused and inspired, broken and healed, but, throughout it all, you’ve never been without the loving arms of Your Heavenly Father wrapped securely around you.

 

Whatever you have gleaned from this pilgrimage, it is very important to write it down because God plans to use it. Whatever He does in you and through you is for His glory. Before the beginning of the world, He planned for you to be at this exact place with Him at this precise time.

 

God specifically purposed and planned what you’ve learned during these 40 days in order to prepare you for the coming months and years ahead. He does not waste a single moment, and this precious time you shared with Him was provided by His gracious design. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, God has focused on bringing His children back into a right and holy relationship with Him. And, here you are, at what has probably been one of the most intimate experiences in your Christian journey so far. Hopefully, you are now more profoundly in love with your Savior than you ever dreamed possible and are experiencing a depth of love you never before fathomed.

 

While you may have learned much, God’s greatest hope is that you discovered the importance of abiding in Him. He is your first and foremost priority, forever, with no exception. Your Father has longed for a deep, abiding relationship with you. He wants to kindle your passion until you are burning to do His will. Great adventures await.

 

It is, as it always has been, for the good of His great Kingdom plan that you join Him at His table. As you rise from your place of safety and comfort to go out into the world and do the work that He has prepared for you, do not forget that you have a permanent reservation at His Divine table, and He longs to meet again. He extended you an open invitation, and He would love for you to bring a friend. He will be waiting when you return.

 

What you’ve learned should be shared, and, just as the first church was built by eating together in one another’s homes, God intends for you to continue the same tradition. The Dutch have a word that describes a family living in harmony; it is “gezellig”[i]; I believe that is how the Lord would like to see His church defined. His desire is that we are unified (Romans 15:5-6); we were never meant to compete or undermine each other. We were designed to uphold and encourage one another. He intended for us to work together to spread the good news of His coming. His desire is that we first love Him and then love another (Mark 12:29-31). Now that you’ve experienced deep, abiding love with your Father, you can better understand and appreciate what loving one another really requires.

 

The Lord has called you to cry out on behalf of your country and your world. He now asks you to serve as His ambassador, spreading His love throughout your sphere of influence. For the past 40 days, you depended on Him for every morsel; He will continue to nourish and sustain you, as long as you show up at His table. Now, return His favor, and invite Him to join you for each breakfast that you quietly eat in your car on the way to work, for each lunch that you share with your co-workers and friends, and for each dinner that you enjoy with your family. In every opportunity and every encounter, you represent Christ. Stand with assurance that He is right beside you, and living inside you, as you obediently share His amazing grace in your life.

 

The Lord has shown you great love in ways you never thought possible, and it should be your deepest desire to share that love with everyone He brings across your path. Jesus said, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.” (John 15:12-14).

 

You fully surrendered your life at the feet of Jesus. Now, you must go in His name to stake His claim for a lost and dying world. It’s easy to fall right back into your old habits. As God takes you out of your comfort zone and into some unknown territory, your former life may seem comfortable and familiar in comparison, but do not make the mistake of regressing. Do not end where you began.

 

If you’ve learned anything these past few weeks, it is this: when God calls you, trust Him. When He asks “Whom shall I send?”, obediently and confidently say, “Here am I. Send me.” (See Isaiah 6:8).

 

You have been the honored guest at the table of the King of Kings. You have tasted and seen just how good the Lord is.  You have learned what it means to feast, rather than fast, and you have been satisfied, sustained and refreshed and filled with the richest of fare from the Lord’s banqueting table.  Now, Go!  Share what you have learned with another hungry, starving soul, and always remember that your place is reserved at the table of the King.  May you never forget the intimacy you have found with the Lord as you have soaked in His Presence in prayer and in the power of His Word these past 40 days, and may an insatiable hunger to know the Lord more deeply and intimately draw you back to His table each and every day from this moment forward.

 

To help you along the way you will find other devotional prayer and fasting journeys on this website.  In the Temple, you will find additional 40 day journeys.  Click on the Scroll Room Devotional Library at the top of your screen and you will find additional 3-day, 8-day, 10-day and 12-day devotional journeys on page one and two of the library.  Please join our mailing list to be informed of upcoming journeys – we look forward to the next journey together as we go deeper and higher in our relationship with our glorious Lord!

 

“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn His face toward you and give you peace.”

(Numbers 6:24-26).

 

(Isaiah 41:10).

 

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