{"id":16327,"date":"2023-09-19T20:01:00","date_gmt":"2023-09-20T00:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/?p=16327"},"modified":"2024-01-17T22:10:39","modified_gmt":"2024-01-18T03:10:39","slug":"first-love-tend-your-thirst","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/first-love-tend-your-thirst\/","title":{"rendered":"First Love Devotional: Tend to your Thirst"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"16327\" class=\"elementor elementor-16327\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-796810bb elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"796810bb\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-5369a773\" data-id=\"5369a773\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7242a09 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7242a09\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 30-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p><!-- wp:paragraph --><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit;\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">apart from me you can do nothing.\u201d John 15:5<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The August sun is blazing. I have been working in the heat, with still much work to go \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An ignored thought surfaces: I need water.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I am reminded of the clarion call from the prophet Isaiah:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><i>\u201cHo! Everyone who thirsts\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Yes, I am thirsty. I had forgotten. The heat, the intensity of the work\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Suddenly I realize my thirst can\u2019t be ignored \u2013<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><i>\u201c\u2026Come to the waters\u201d <\/i><\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Isaiah 55:1)<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Have you been there recently? Out in the \u201cheat\u201d of the battle, the heat of constant demands, even the heat of ministry, when you suddenly realize you must tend to your thirst?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is a deep thirst within us that only Jesus can satisfy. Blaise Pascal famously said, \u201cThere is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each man which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.\u201d This vacuum gets filled in a beautiful way when we first give our lives to Jesus, but our need for His filling doesn\u2019t end there.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We were created for a constant abiding in His presence. There is a line in an old hymn that reads: \u201cI\u2019m drinking at the fountain that never shall run dry\u201d (\u201cDwelling in Beulah Land,\u201d C. Austin Miles, 1911). Are you drinking from that fountain? The fountain never runs dry, but apart from Him we certainly can. Jesus says He is the vine, and we are the branches (John 15:5). If we remain in Him \u2013 IF and only if \u2013 then we will flourish. We cannot thrive without drawing from the life in Him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What does it mean to draw life from Jesus? Jesus gives us the answer: \u201cRemain in my love\u201d (John 15:9). His love is our life-source. The Apostle Paul says without love we are nothing (1 Corinthians 13:2). Living in love is the essence of what it means to belong to Jesus. It is how the world knows we follow Him (John 13:35) and it is how we ourselves know we are abiding in Him (1 John 4:16).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Whatever \u201cheat\u201d has been draining our supply, we all need to drink from the Living Waters of His love. There is a \u201cpure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb\u201d (Rev. 22:1). It is available for whoever would come and drink.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I hear the heart cry of Jesus longing for the thirsty to come. I think sometimes Jesus gets lonely over us. I am reminded of the time the crowd dispersed and He turned to the disciples and asked, \u201cDo you also want to go away?\u201d (John 6:67) or the time He lamented over the Ephesian church having left their first love (Revelation 2:4).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He is thirsting for us, as we are thirsting for Him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He is our Bridegroom. He is our First Love. And He is ever extending an invitation for the bride to come and drink of His love.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cRemain in my love,\u201d He says. Because nothing can satisfy like the love of Jesus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI&#8217;m coming back to where we started<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When I first felt Your love<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;re all that matters, Jesus<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;re all that matters<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I&#8217;m coming back to what really matters<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Just Your heart<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I just want to bless Your heart, Jesus<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I just want You<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nothing else, nothing else<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nothing else will do<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/><\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I just want You\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lyrics from \u201cNothing Else\u201d by Cody Carnes\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I believe Jesus is extending an invitation. He is calling out to those who will pause and acknowledge their thirst. It is an invitation to come and drink freely, to \u201cbuy without price\u201d (Isaiah 55:1). He is awaiting our acceptance of the invitation. He will wait as long as it takes. But why keep Him waiting?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Bridegroom is calling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I pray that we would be the ones to answer His call, to come and sit at His feet. To abide in His love.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My beloved speaks and says to me:<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cArise, my love, my beautiful one,<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and come away\u201d (Song of Solomon 2:10)<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">P.S. We want to extend an invitation to you to come away with us and meet with the Lord for a time of rest and refreshing at the \u201cFirst Love Retreat\u201d in January 2024. God blew us away at this year\u2019s retreat and we are believing for even more next year. We are increasingly expectant for what God has to unleash in the body of Christ in 2024 and are committing to starting the year off right in a dedicated time of intimacy with our First Love.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!-- \/wp:paragraph --><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-d1cfe1d elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"d1cfe1d\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d84d973\" data-id=\"d84d973\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8163761 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8163761\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 30-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-1024x1024.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-16573\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/FirstLoveRetreat_SocialMediaSquare_8.5x8.5_10.6.22_2-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-463f76d\" data-id=\"463f76d\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7fa34fe elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"7fa34fe\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 30-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-heading-title{padding:0;margin:0;line-height:1}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title[class*=elementor-size-]>a{color:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-small{font-size:15px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-medium{font-size:19px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-large{font-size:29px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xl{font-size:39px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xxl{font-size:59px}<\/style><h5 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">FIRST LOVE RETREAT<\/h5>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-ff9306e elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"ff9306e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><strong>Bradenton, FL \/\/ Jan 5-8, 2024<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>First Love Retreat will provide simple teachings to enhance your devotional times. Together, we will meditate on the reality of who God is: His goodness, His sacrifice, His pre-eminence, His love. Enjoy His presence in times of quiet reflection and meaningful conversations. Encounter Him, and experience who He is.<\/p>\n<p>Come. Rest. Renew the fire of your First Love.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d5ed5df elementor-widget elementor-widget-button\" data-id=\"d5ed5df\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"button.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-button-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"elementor-button elementor-button-link elementor-size-sm\" href=\"https:\/\/reg.globalawakening.com\/first-love-retreat-2024\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-content-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"elementor-button-text\">LEARN MORE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cI am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit;\u00a0 apart from me you can do nothing.\u201d John 15:5 The August sun is blazing. I have been working in the heat, with still much work to go \u2013 An ignored thought surfaces: I [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":16604,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[305],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16327"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16327"}],"version-history":[{"count":29,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18108,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16327\/revisions\/18108"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalawakening.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}